


Out of My Depth

by tbiris



Series: Out of My Depth [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mystery, Polyamory, Sailing, Serious at Times, Silly at Times, Slow Build, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-02
Updated: 2015-06-18
Packaged: 2018-03-04 20:49:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 53,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3088916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tbiris/pseuds/tbiris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There was something alluring about humans. Eren didn't care if they died at the hands of his 'mermaid' brethren, but it seemed he would become only more invested in their lives when a pirate ship catches him as a prize. Especially a fellow prisoner who was all too willing to share the outside world with him, and a captain that refuses to see him as some<i>one</i> rather than some<i>thing</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hooked

**Author's Note:**

> So this is the first time I've ever finished Nanowrimo, and this is what I wrote for it. Mega thanks to the awesome Remembrance123 the magical beta. That said, if either of us missed something, please let me know.
> 
> This is based off of a fanart I saw a while ago, although I probably changed a lot from the initial intentions with the drawing but... yeah.

Two-leggers seemed to see something special about the sea, at least from how they always seemed to be in it. Eren never really understood why they bothered when they couldn’t even breathe, live. Instead they ventured out in their wooden ships or never went far from shore.

 Of course, he was one to talk. He ignored the dangers and would sit on the rocks until he could feel his tail drying out. If he stayed out for a day, he would dry out and die, or so their stories went.  
   
 There wasn’t that much to entertain him though, and the rocks they lived near were forever changing. On days of extreme boredom he would even go with the few that liked to tempt the two-leggers to their watery grave. They would laugh at the thought of how the apes couldn’t survive once their head was below the water, while they could survive in both, for short periods of time. He never found it amusing.  
   
 What he did find amusing, was how some of his pod-mates failed so horribly at seducing two-leggers into the water. He hid a smile as one in particular was shot through the shoulder, his fins spasmed in distress. Jean always was slow at dodging. Fast enough to whine when he was getting patched up though.  
   
 That didn’t matter though; he had no real interest in the two-leggers. His desire would soon be on the ocean floor. The ship was beginning to sink from his pod-mates’ attack. Their purpose was quite different from his own, his desire of knowledge compared to how they wanted to flaunt their advantage. They wanted to show that these things had no place in their sea, especially if they couldn’t even compete underwater. There were even those that couldn’t even find their way up to the surface when they fell.  
   
 The pod was beginning to regroup. Eren sighed and dove to meet Jean. It was one thing to laugh at him, but completely another to leave him outside of the pod safety zone. Half the pod followed whenever the sirens got particularly hungry, looked out for them. Besides, if he saved the asshole then he could gloat until they rose further away to breathe. It made the effort worthwhile.

 He let his lips spread into a devious smile as Jean saw who was coming to help him. Jean, once again, messed up and opened his mouth to let out a large bubble of air. Eren rolled his eyes and took hold of the bleeding siren. He flashed his tail twice to signal the pod before darting away, dispersing the blood and putting distance between them as he strove to get Jean to the surface.  
   
 Their heads broke the water, Jean coughing and swearing all the while.  
 “You don’t learn do you?” Eren teased.  
 Jean glared at him while he gulped in breaths of air.  
 “Did Jean breathe in again?” Mina’s head popped up.  
 Eren grinned.  
 “You’re horrible for doing it to him on purpose.” Mina hid her smile behind a hand.  
 “He asked for it. Who’s watching?”  
 “Hannah and Franz,” Jean rasped. “You’re blind to miss those colours.”  
   
 Eren shrugged. “The rest are done then?”  
 “Half the pod is still there,” Mina replied. “We thought you might like witnesses if Jean decided to get unruly.”  
 “Unruly? Why the fuck would I be unruly?”  
 “Because there isn’t an exit wound,” Eren pointed out. He pretended not to be concerned when Jean’s face drained of all colour. “It won’t be that bad,” he cajoled. “I’ll even sing while we get it out.”  
 “No! I remember what happened last time!”  
 “Then maybe I should sing just so you forget.”  
 “Fuck you!”  
 “Eren is the best at it.” Mina hesitated. Her head dropped back below water.  
 “It can wait until the rocks though,” Eren observed. “If you want.”  
 “Fuck yes,” Jean groaned. “Just… don’t fucking drag me along like that.”  
 “Aggravation can make it worse.”  
 “Fuck that, where the fuck do you even pick this shit up?”  
 Eren stared at him and drifted away, floating on his back to face the sky. “I don’t really know.”  
   
 His instincts seemed to help the pod out more than once. Especially with injuries. He sank back down to face Jean.  
 “But really, if we stay too much longer something’s going to come by to snack on you.”  
 Jean grumbled something, but Eren really didn’t care to listen. He stopped as Jean resisted going below the surface.  
 “Two songs; and I’m still swimming. You aren’t just dragging me back.”  
 The corner of Eren’s mouth twitched up and he nodded. Jean’s arm was slung around his shoulder, rather than Eren carrying him. Eren was swimming far faster, but he knew Jean’s pride was wounded and he wanted the idea that he was helping.  
   
 They reached the rocks soon enough.  
 “What, the idiot got hurt again?”  
 Eren snarled at Ymir, beating Jean to it.  
 “She doesn’t mean it!” Krista always came to the cecaelia’s defense.  
 “And jellyfish don’t sting. She meant it!” Eren retorted, dragging Jean up onto the rocks. “You better have actually purified the shitty things instead of poisoning them this time.”  
 “Sorry, I thought they were for you, two-stick-lover.” Ymir slithered across to where they stored some of the more precious items, especially the ones that were damaged by the water. One example was the two nice sticks Mikasa had found. Eren discovered that they actually worked quite well when idiots, such as Jean, got too cocky and injured.  
   
 They had to watch one of their own die when they hadn’t extracted the metal object from her flesh. It had been far too late and the night had been filled with the variety of mourning songs. Since then, Eren decided to care for any wounds and somehow they hadn’t had a death since.  
 “Oi, songs remember?” Jean didn’t even insult him. Eren stared at him for a moment. He hated singing. What he hated even more was how the entire pod was staring at them now.  
 “Shut up while I get set up,” Eren mumbled.  
   
 Jean was quiet as Eren shuffled on the rock so Jean’s head could rest on his tail.  
 “Don’t be afraid to scream,” Eren advised.  
 Jean gave him a weak smile. “Like I’d give you that pleasure.”  
 Eren laughed nervously. He took in a deep breath and let it out. The next time his mouth opened, melody fell from it.  
   
 He wasn’t even sure what he was singing about so that the pod was hanging on his every note. The words didn’t matter; he had to focus on removing the metal irritating his friend. It was proving more difficult than normal, so that Eren was glad that he offered two songs instead.  
   
 Finally, Eren managed to remove the round metal using the metal sticks. He didn’t even bleed Jean dry. He would have to stick closer to the surface than normal. In fact, it might be best if he was just confined to the rocks for now. But Eren would explain that to him later, for now the wound was still bleeding.  
 “Go see Mikasa now.” It was better than sending Jean to Ymir; she might actually put him in his grave this time.  
   
 The two were their ultimate protectors, the witches of the sea. At least as far as the ships would call them. There were times that Eren wondered if he possessed an inkling of the power the witches, but even so there was no point in him trying and making things worse when there were two practiced cecaelias in their pod.  
   
 The movements of their lower body still freaked him out a bit, watching an octopus move on land felt so strange when he was used to the more fluid movements of the water.  
   
 Speaking of water, he was beginning to feel a bit dry. He slowly slipped into the closest water channel. He smiled as he dived and swum to the large pool. He burst out to the top, spraying them all with water.  
 “So you sent him to Mikasa?” Ymir drawled.  
 Eren smiled slightly. “I don’t think he even realised that she didn’t come out with the feeding party.”  
 Ymir snorted. “The idiot. Those two should start courting already.”  
 Eren shrugged. Ymir always had a reason to talk, unless it was Krista. He just had to wait until she told him.  
 “Krista has to go out,” she finally sighed. “I want you to go with her. You have good eyes.”  
 Eren raised an eyebrow. He didn’t have good eyes, not when it felt like the pod had to save his ass every other week. Ymir glared at him and hauled herself closer to the water.  
 “Krista’s more careful when you’re around. You’re both important to the pod. So if you’re around she pays more attention and when she’s around you fucking pay more attention which is a fucking miracle.”  
   
 Eren sighed and slumped on the rock. Maybe she had a point, besides if he did it then Ymir would owe him one. Maybe she would purify those sticks again for him. He had left them on the rock, stained with blood. He got squeamish at the idea of mixing different people’s blood, probably another one of those weird instincts.  
 “Fine, but does it have to be today?” He hoped not, singing had taken a lot out of him; more than taking that stupid metal out.  
 Ymir shrugged. “Ask her. I told her I wasn’t letting her out of the net unless she was with someone.”  
   
 Ymir and Mikasa’s net kept the predators away from the rock, letting their pod sleep peacefully. The downside was that one of them had to stay near the ‘center’, and the other couldn’t wander too far. He had wondered occasionally what the pod had done before Mikasa had found them.  
   
 “Where is she?”  
 Ymir rolled her eyes. “Where the fuck else? Can’t leave those fishes alone for even a day.”  
 Eren laughed. “If she did half of us would starve!”  
 “Yeah, well I think she hates that part of it too.” Ymir sighed.  
 “She deals with it well. You’re worrying too much.”  
 “Because none of you fuckers do. So Mikasa and I worry for all of you idiots.”  
 “Sorry,” Eren mumbled. “I’ll go find her.”  
 “I’ll go fix those fucking sticks for you before I hunt,” Ymir grumbled. “Only for your pretty voice.”  
 Eren dove under quickly. He didn’t understand what was so special about his voice, and no one in the pod seemed to be able to describe it properly either. It was different from the allure of the sirens, which held a draw even for most of them. The cecaelia’s songs were coarse and powerful like the waves during a storm.  
   
 Of them all, he liked Krista’s songs the most. They were playful and inviting. The fish would dance around with her, and she would invite some back with her to stay. By Ymir’s order, at Krista’s request, the pod only ate the oldest fish.  
   
 He found her, in the large tidal pool filled with fish of many sorts. He had no idea how she managed to stop them all from eating each other, and only eating the kelp at the base or leaving the net to hunt and return. It was nice to watch. Krista was one of the few that could actually breathe both underwater and above, letting her sing underwater. Most of them were different, and accepted it as her odd quirk. She explained it with a name, but it didn’t make sense to most of them. Sirena chilota, he mouthed. It was still strange and felt so different from siren, even the feelings from the word.  
   
 ‘Eren. What can I help you with?’ Krista had swum towards him during his musings. He rolled his eyes and heard her giggle as they both rose to the surface.  
 “I’m sorry, I forget.”  
 “It’s fine. Ymir suggested I escort you.”  
 Krista sighed.  
 “I just wanted to know when you want to go out,” Eren continued.  
 “Why does she do this?” Krista grumbled. “I can take care of myself.”  
 “She said something like we’re more alert when the other is around? I can’t remember.”  
 “She’s probably right too,” Krista admitted glumly. She glanced up at the sky, the sun shining brightly overhead. “Let’s go closer to sunset. They’ll be closer to the surface then.”  
 “Okay, I’ll be at my spot napping then.” Exhaustion was hanging onto his bones now. Krista waved and went back to singing in the middle of her fish typhoon.  
   
 Eren swum slowly to his rock. They each had their own spot they liked to sleep, with their tail dipped into the water. Occasionally Eren liked to just float in the pool face up, staring at the stars until his eyes drooped closed. Not today though. The sun was enough to irritate him still while he tried to recover his energy.  
   
 Yet sunset arrived too soon, because Krista was shaking him away. Ymir was hovering over both of them, nattering on about coming back quickly. Like either of them wanted to hear the lectures if they didn’t. Ymir or Mikasa on their own were bad. Both of them at the same time… Eren would rather be captured by two-leggers or eaten by the tiny annoying sharks.  
   
 After leaving the net it turned into a bit of a race. There weren’t any birds this far out, and they could keep an eye out below them. Eren paced himself against Krista, seeing as she was the one that needed to get out. It was the first time he’d be able to watch her work.  
 ‘Down,’ she instructed. They dove quickly into a school of fish. Eren kept his distance as Krista chatted to them.  
   
 It was a good thing he did, and even better that he saw the odd shadow approaching them. His skin shivered. The ship was sleek, one of the ones the sirens barely targeted because of their speed. This one was beginning to slow down. He glanced over at Krista, surrounded by the fish. She probably hadn’t even noticed it yet.

 He pumped his tail, smacking into more than a few fish in his desperation to reach her, to drag her out of the ship’s shadow. He barely reached her in time, the fish clearing a route as they became aware of the threat. Moments after a large net descended, he managed to shove Krista out of its range. He lost just enough speed shoving her out of the shadow that he couldn’t reach the edge of the net. He tried to rip at the ropes, bite through them. He was stuck. He half heard Krista’s cries and attempts to rip open, even the fish trying to chew through it.  
   
 He couldn’t get out. Krista had to go back or Ymir would kill him, if he wasn’t already dead.  
 ‘Go!’ he managed to get out before water flooded his lungs and he began to cough even as the ropes began to cut into his skin as the net rose. His head banged against something hard, then Krista’s cries turned to silence and the dry air struck his skin as everything turned black.


	2. Trapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren meets his captors, and a strange boy

He woke gasping for air, flailing only to strike something hard. He paused, gulping in air as his brain began to interpret what he was seeing. He could see _through_ whatever was holding him. There were chains holding him up, probably the only reason he hadn’t drowned in the water. Even odder was the wooden _thing_ all around him. Then there was the metal that was even smaller around him. It seemed to stretch for a while, but he couldn’t even explore with the metal things holding him there. He twisted to try and look at them. There was a line where it seemed the things might split. He pried at them with his hands, but they were sturdier than the fragments he had removed from his friends before.  
   
 He jolted as thunder came from the side and he bristled, drawing as far away from the sound as he could.  
 “Oh! You’re awake!” The brown-hair thundered close, but stayed on his side of the metal. Eren only stared at him. He couldn’t forget that he was a prisoner right now. They could have just tossed him back into the ocean, let Krista take care of him. Instead he was hooked by the weird metal.  
 “So it was air! Right? You breathe air, not water?”  
 Eren hesitated before he nodded. He didn’t relish the thought of drowning.  
 “Aha! Those idiots wanted to submerge you in water to keep you alive! I noticed you were coughing up water on the deck!” The two-legger’s movement reminded Eren of mating dances among fish.  
 “You’ll answer my questions right? We didn’t even realise there were still mermaids around! There’s so much we can learn!”  
   
 Eren bristled and hissed at him.  
 He only laughed and waved. “Well, we didn’t expect you to come up with dinner anyways. If you need anything I’m the quartermaster, Hanji! Feel free to holler for me! No one other than the captain or quartermaster is allowed down here anyways! Not that he would come down here…” His voice got even deeper and whiny. “It’s fucking filthy down there Hanji, why would I want to visit some prissy prisoner that refuses to work.”  
   
 Eren hoped that not all two-leggers talked as much as this Hanji. He thought Jean had been bad, but now he _wanted_ the siren with him.  
 “Can you even talk? You haven’t said a single word yet! It might be troublesome if you can’t communicate your needs to us… Can you write?”  
 Eren stared at him. He didn’t even have time to nod as he went to different topics, not that he wanted to cooperate.  
 “Hanji.” A deep voice interrupted from where the thundering was before. It was quieter this time, like the soft clicks of crab legs on the rocks. “Are you done interrogating yet?”  
 “He hasn’t answered anything! Or she… Are you male? Or female?”  
 “How about you give it a fucking minute to reply. Not that it matters since it’s fucking going to the Commodore anyways.”  
   
 He disliked that voice even more. He wasn’t an item just to be pawned off.  
 “I don’t know if he can talk though… It is he right?” The brown hair turned to look at him.  
 Eren nodded. He relaxed a little, letting his tail stretch out. The metal holding his arms up was starting to hurt though.  
 “Well he can understand you at least, whoop de doo. Get the fuck back to work!” The deep voice ordered.  
 “Wait! I need to make sure he’s okay!”  
 Eren stiffened as he approached.  
 “Anything you need?”  
 He rattled the chains hopefully. Hanji just laughed and came on the other side of the metal. Eren instinctively edged away, but he just put something into the hole for the metal things and it came off. He rubbed his wrists and edged further away.  
 “Anyways! Stay in here, I’ll close the door so no one bothers you! We had to have you upright because there was some argument about delivering you alive or dead. The trip back will be much more interesting with you alive though!”  
   
 Eren dropped under the water, the level was barely enough to cover him so he didn’t have to touch the wood.  
 “Awww, you’re shy aren’t you?”  
 “Get the fuck up here you shit-face of a woman. You’re fucking in charge of the ship right now you asshole.”  
 Eren stared, processing that the ‘he’ was a woman.  
 “Yes sir,” she replied sullenly. “But can you talk?”  
 Eren nodded. Anything to get her out of his face.  
 “But!”  
 “ _Quartermaster to the fucking deck!_ ” the voice repeated harshly.  
 Hanji sighed. “I’ll be back!”  
   
 He really hoped she wouldn’t. He waited for the thundering to begin again and disappear past his hearing before surfacing. It was really uncomfortable to try and swim in such shallow water. The strange metal surrounded him, holding him in a cage. Except that there were odd square holes in the metal. He spent a while trying to figure out how they could possibly change the shape like that, compared to the flecks he would remove.  
   
 They were moving in the sea somehow, he could hear the difference in the water if his ear was close to the wood. Perhaps they were in one of those vessels that the others liked to hunt. Would Jean be able to hear him if he called through the wood? He didn’t have time to test it before he could hear soft sounds in the same direction the thundering came from earlier. He shuffled far away from it. Maybe if he swam for it when the metal door opened there would be a way out. He knew it was too hopeful, that his pod would have made use of any such thing during their hunt.  
   
 “Um, Hanji sent me down to see if you were hungry?” The blond male looked at the metal cage in confusion. Possibly because Eren was still hiding in the water. The male placed a cylindrical wooden thing at the edge of the cage, before tying it to one of the rungs. If he left, Eren wouldn’t have any way to escape.  
   
 His practice for races paid off when he managed to grab the blond’s hand before the knot finished. He caught him off guard, making the two-legger trip and fall into the water.  
   
 Eren cringed at the contents of the weird thing on the door. Fish. Many of his pod-mates may eat them, but there were some species that were more scavengers or just outright herbivores. Eren tended to the latter, even though his species was omnivorous. He managed to untie the knot and shoved the item back at the boy before pointing at the metal door.  
 “Ah-I… I can’t open the door.”  
 “What the fuck are you doing down here Arlert?” The boy stiffened in Eren’s grasp and Eren turned to see the deep-voice. “This area is off-limits.”  
   
 Eren narrowed his eyes. That was the man that called him a thing. Nothing more than something to be traded. He hissed in his direction.  
 “Well I do have to say he’s a gorgeous specimen.” A smirk drifted onto the black-haired’s face. “Why are you still there Arlert?”  
 “Uh, Captain he won’t let go.” The blond pulled his hand back gently, taking Eren’s hand with him.  
 “And you thought it would be better to be stuck than damage a precious item. I see… Well I’ll take out my anger on you later Arlert. Since you shouldn’t be here.”  
 The blond stiffened in Eren’s hand. He didn’t really understand what was going on; none of the pod spoke quite like the deep-voice.  
   
 The black hair stepped into the water, cringing slightly as he strode towards them. Like the water was something filthy to touch. Eren bristled in anger. This was by far some of the cleanest water he had felt on his skin for a long time, and this man was treating it like filth.  
   
 So when he touched Eren, he treated the deep-voice with as much respect as he treated the water. As the blond’s hand was yanked out of his, he used his tail to drench the man from head to toe. When he stared him down, Eren refused to look away. The man scoffed and turned, dragging the blond with him. Eren didn’t really understand why the other looked so terrified. He would be surprised if either came by again.  
   
 Yet the blond did. Eren stared at him balefully from the water. The blond was more defensive, curling around himself as he approached the metal. He had brought something else with him in that weird item, something green. Eren stared, hesitant about trying something he didn’t know, until the blond took a bite out of one and swallowed. Eren took one and took a small nibble before grabbing the rest and retreated to the back of the cage. They were leaves, although they were more solid than kelp and were crunchier with less salt.  
   
 The blond smiled a little, but stayed in his position on one of the weird wood things, out of the water.  
 “I’m glad you like them. I was a little worried if you didn’t like those… we don’t have too much on board though. Most of the sailors get on with just fish and lemons. Hanji’s the only reason why we keep a good stock of something green. She’ll probably be more than ecstatic that you eat greens since it means more raids and stops.”  
   
 Raids. That was a word familiar to Eren, usually with violence among the two-leggers. He stared at the blond, wondering why groups of people would ‘raid’.  
 “Sorry if I’m boring you.”  
 Eren shook his head. The blond smiled slightly.  
 “I’m Armin, do you have a name? Something you call yourself?”  
 Eren was confused. He thought that the deep-voice called him ‘Arlert’.  
 “Ah, I guess you don’t then. Maybe I should think of one for you.”  
 That was something Eren wouldn’t permit. He scowled, causing the blond to flinch back away from him.  
 “Okay, so do you have a name then?”  
 Eren nodded.  
 “Can you only speak underwater?”  
 Eren shook his head.  
   
 “I see… you don’t trust me.”  
 Eren didn’t move or say anything.  
 “Does your neck hurt like that?”  
 Eren tilted his head slightly before shaking it. It felt like an odd question to ask.  
 “You had your neck up like this,” Armin looked straight up, “when you were swimming. So I thought if you were like that all the time, I thought it would hurt to be talking like you are now.”  
 Eren shook his head again. They would talk like this by the rocks, and star gazing was one of his favourite night-time activities. It felt just as natural to look at Armin like this as well as looking forward when he was swimming.  
 “That’s amazing. My neck hurts if I hold it up too long. It made star gazing difficult. Do you like to look at the stars?”  
   
 Eren nodded, a small smile drifted across his face.  
  A similar smile came across Armin’s face. “They probably aren’t as important to you though. I used to study them, learn how they changed in the sky as I travelled…” he trailed off and sounded sad.  
 Eren couldn’t help the crooning from his throat as he drifted closer to Armin.  
 Armin wiped at his eyes before smiling again.  
 “But if I wasn’t forced here then I couldn’t have seen another wondrous sight as well.”  
 Eren blinked at him.  
 The blond snorted. “You.”  
 Eren flicked his tail, not really believing him.  
 “You don’t understand? You’re myths to everyone but some sailors. The Captain didn’t put much stock into them though. Hanji’s just fanatic about you right now… she really is helpful…”  
 Eren raised an eyebrow.  
 Armin swallowed, before meeting Eren’s eyes, flinching slightly.  
 “The Captain ordered twenty lashes… she talked him down to five, with the condition I report back to both of them…”  
 Eren drew back.  
 “That doesn’t mean I will tell them everything though,” Armin’s voice was firm. “I may cooperate so we don’t all die on this ship, but I’m not willingly a part of the crew.”  
   
 That startled Eren. He wasn’t aware that other prisoners were permitted to move around freely. Then again, there weren’t many places he could go.  
 “I can’t open the door, sorry.”  
 Eren blinked at him.  
 “You looked envious,” Armin explained. “Like you would rip off your skin to get out of the cage, but I don’t have the key.”  
 Key, that was a new word. He wasn’t really aware of what it meant, but maybe Armin would tell him more about the world he found himself in. Except, it meant he would have to trust him at least a little bit.  
   
 Eren stared at the blond. Another prisoner, someone like him. He would see just how much he could trust Armin.  
 “Eren,” he murmured. The blond started and splashed in the water, coming closer.  
 “What?”  
 “Eren. My name is Eren.”  
   
   
 


	3. Assess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Armin reflects on how he ended up on a pirate ship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's been a few changes to the tags thanks to the wonderful Remembrance123.
> 
> EDIT: Forgot my italics again. Also forgot my italics on Ch.2, they've been added now. Whoops.

Armin knew Levi had gone lightly on him, more of a message to the crew than anything else. It didn’t do anything to stop the tears from welling in his eyes. He knew to try and keep the wounds clean, but without a doctor they didn’t have much reason to keep medical supplies on board.  
   
 He didn’t expect that he would end up here when his parents asked if he wanted to join them to visit his grandparents. It was meant to be a short trip, and in the first few days Armin was already learning so much about navigation and trading. It was rotten luck, running into the _Relentless_ as she left her cove.  
   
 He had been clutching his homemade maps to his chest at the time. If the merchants hadn’t fought, he wondered how many of them would still be on board the _Relentless_ , instead of dying to protect their wares. He probably wouldn’t have been alive if Hanji hadn’t picked up one of his maps. After that Levi almost threw him onto the _Relentless_.  
 He smiled bitterly, remembering how _eloquent_ Levi had been.  
   
 *  
   
  _“So you’re going to let your talents just waste away then?”  
 “Levi you’re being too harsh!”  
 “He fucking needs to hear it Hanji. Do you think you’re worthless just because you’re on a pirate ship? Your fucking talent could save more than the lives of someone that has it so far up his ass he won’t look at a commoner’s maps. Even if he’s a fucking child.”  
 “It wouldn’t save my parents!”  
 “They had a choice, same as you. The same as every other person on that ship. We retaliate, that’s all. You can throw yourself off that rail if you like, or you can actually help people that give a shit for their lives. Choose.”  
  _  
 *  
   
 He had been so confused at his choice, until he watched the Relentless attack. No ship had a chance against her, especially if Hanji and Mike were in good moods. His so-called talent for navigation gave the ship even more maneuverability. The extra assurance of their terrain turned the _Relentless_ from a difficult opponent, to an impossible one.  
   
 Armin straightened. Maybe that was a way he could protect Eren: if Eren scoped out the ocean floor then his charts would be even more accurate. Lately Levi seemed to entertain his thoughts more, perhaps if Eren was agreeable he would be able to get more freedom at least.  
   
 “Armin?” Hanji’s head poked into his room. “We need you up on deck. Levi’s on a rampage.”  
 “Right.” Armin moved carefully so that his injuries wouldn’t be too aggravated.  
 “How did things go? Did he talk to you?”  
 Armin gave her a small smile. “He gave me his name, he didn’t say anything else.” He felt that Eren was testing him, so he had promised himself he’d only answer Hanji’s direct questions. As kind as most of the crew were, there was still some secret he didn’t know. Some reason that he was usually treated like glass. So long as he wasn’t trusted, he couldn’t trust them either.  
 “What about food? You asked if we had anything green, was that for you?”  
 “No, he grimaced at the fish so I thought that they might be vegetarian.”  
 Hanji frowned and paused, tapping her foot on the deck. “That doesn’t make any sense though. If that’s the case why would they kill off sailors?”  
   
 Armin paused, considering that for a moment. He opened his mouth as Petra came by.  
 “Thank God! Armin! There’s something odd, so if you can just check the bearings against where we should be…”  
 “That’s why he’s still here,” Levi drawled. He was relaxed, an eye on the ship and an eye on the sea. Levi tended to be tense if anything was amiss. So if Petra was really worried…  
 “Yes we lied.” Levi stared straight at him. Armin tensed, pain flaring in his back.  
 “Well Levi and I both have to be on deck right now to supervise, so it’s the easiest method to talk about—” Hanji began.  
 “Our newest acquisition,” Levi interrupted. Both Hanji and Armin glared at him. Armin knew better than to open his mouth though.  
 “Find,” Hanji corrected. “Our newest find.”  
 “Eren,” Armin stated. Both of them stared at him. “ _His_ name is Eren.”  
   
 Only the sound of the wind and ruffle of canvas was heard across the ship.  
 “Are you telling me, you spoke to him and he replied?” Levi asked darkly. Armin could feel his skin shiver, but he would stand his ground on this.  
 “Wait, wait Levi! This is good!” Hanji was bouncing on her seat on the railing. “We can find out if there’s more! Just imagine the possibilities!”  
   
 Armin took in a deep breath; this was a good opportunity to try and convince them Eren could be useful, that he was a person. “I can increase the accuracy of my maps if he agrees.”  
 “ _If_. It would run away at the first chance and we wouldn’t have a hope in catching it again. It’s going to that fucking Commodore. Nothing can change my mind.”  
 Armin was relieved that Hanji was frowning as well.  
 “However,” Levi drawled. “I don’t have any particular desire to take a direct route to port.”  
 Hanji shrieked and hugged the shorter male.  
 “ _Get off me!_ ” He kicked her off the quartermaster deck. “Go take inventory or bother the prisoner. Just don’t _touch_ me! And you lot! Stop staring and get back to work!”  
 Hanji waved at them all and the deck was full of sound once more.  
   
 “Arlert, my quarters.” Levi took off at a smart pace, his boots clicking against the wood. Armin could feel snakes pooling in his stomach, just waiting for the right moment to bite and devour him from the inside out.  
   
 He couldn’t stop shaking as Levi closed the door and sat on his desk, Armin facing him.  
 “Stop jittering, it’s distracting.”  
 Armin swallowed, trying to gather enough moisture in his mouth to talk. “I-it’s hard Captain.”  
 “You know that this morning was a message to the rest of the crew don’t you?”  
 “Yes Captain.”  
 “Then calm the fuck down.”  
 Armin forced himself to take a deep breath in and out. The shaking slowly stopped, limited to his extremities.  
 Levi hummed happily. “It’s good to know there’s at least one person that can follow orders.”  
 Armin stared at his feet. If he didn’t follow orders, he didn’t want to know what would await him at port.  
 “Why are you so interested in this creature? You’ve always been looking up and forward.”  
   
 Armin glanced up at Levi, meeting his eyes for barely a moment before going back to his feet. “Yes Captain.”  
 “That isn’t the answer I was looking for.”  
 “Will you discipline me then?” Armin’s body jolted as his chin was yanked up forcing him to stare into Levi’s hard look.  
 “No… If you don’t obey, I think I’ll discipline the creature in the hold while it’s with us.”  
 Armin’s eyes went wide.  
 Levi continued on, a smirk slowly forming on his face. “You and Hanji seem so determined to identify with it. It should serve as suitable punishment for either of you. You understand?”  
 Armin swallowed and broke the gaze with Levi. “Yes Captain,” he whispered.  
   
 Levi let go and stepped back behind his desk. “Good. You’re the only one it’s communicated with so far, so I’ll leave it in your and Hanji’s care. Ensure it arrives at port alive and well. No one is to touch it.”  
 Armin nodded, biting his lip.  
 “Out with it.”  
 Armin cringed. “It’s a stupid question.”  
 Levi’s eyes softened slightly. “Ask.”  
 “No.”  
 “What did I just fucking say Arlert?”  
 Armin flinched. He wouldn’t be punished, Eren would be and it would be his fault.  
 “What… what if he touches us? Or if it’s required for his wellbeing.”  
   
 Levi raised an eyebrow. “Then you’ll teach it better.”  
 Armin’s eyes lit up. “Teach? I can teach him?”  
 Levi sighed and waved Armin towards the door. “Yes. Just don’t make me regret it Arlert. If I find either of you trying to take this ship apart…”  
 “Yes Captain!” A smile came naturally across Armin’s face, prompting a small uplift in Levi’s eyes.  
 “Now get the fuck out so I can rest and do paperwork. Your new duties will start tomorrow.”  
 “Yes Captain!” Armin knew he was almost radiating with joy as he walked out onto the deck.  
   
 So he said, but he was drawn into the navigation of the ship until anchor was set for the night. He had managed to put together a rough lesson plan, which was mostly a bunch of questions about what Eren might already know.  
   
 He had a large bucket full of whatever the green stuff was. He was certain Hanji knew, but he didn’t feel like losing a night with the explanation of exactly why it was good to have it on board. He would already have a hard time explaining the situation to Eren properly. He wasn’t even sure if he wanted to have that conversation with him yet. He had to earn his trust, at least a little bit.  
   
 “Eren?” Armin called down. He wasn’t sure about mermaid sleeping habits; it wasn’t like Eren could be anywhere else in the ship really. He could hear a splash from the cell.  
 “I brought more food, but ah, you’ll want to eat it through the day. I might not be able to come down much and bring you something. Most sailors grab something and just go back to work and I might not be able to get away from my duties—” A large splash beside him cut him off. He laughed nervously and tied the handle to the cage. He jolted as Eren’s hand touched his. It was quite human, he hadn’t noticed that before. He expected webbed fingers or something.  
 Instead, Eren actually looked mostly human from the top up. The merman had fins lining his spine that reminded Armin of a swordfish. They were the same deep gold as his tail and matched a smaller set of fins just below his waist. The fin membranes looked far stronger than most fish. The lack of any webbing or fins on his arms bothered Armin slightly.  
   
 “Don’t you use your hands to swim?” He blurted out. He backed away, embarrassed at his enthusiasm.  
 Eren rose up and stared at him. “Do two-leggers use their hands for walking?”  
 “Ah… no… I guess not. But when we swim we have to use our arms as well.”  
 Eren snorted and took a single leaf before retreating to the back of the cell. “It’s dark in here.”  
 “I can bring in a light if you want?”  
 “How?”  
 Armin fumbled. He was fairly certain he had a match on him. It had been one of the items he grabbed before coming down. He had a few items that might be of interest to Eren. He found it and lit it with shaking hands.  
   
 Eren’s eyes were wide and he drew closer.  
 “Something like this won’t last long,” Armin explained as he blew it out. “But there are things we have to help prolong it.”  
 “Why not use the algae?” Eren asked.  
 “Algae?”  
 “It glows, in the dark… sometimes…” Eren bit his lip and retreated further.  
 “Bioluminescence.”  
 “What?”  
 “It’s what we call it.” Armin smiled; this wasn’t going how he thought at all. “I thought… we might share information? Well, specifically the Captain said I could teach you some things… but I thought you might be able to tell me more about the ocean.”  
   
 Eren drew closer, but Armin could still see the suspicion in his eyes. “What information?”  
 “Well… there’s a theory about whales feeding their young with milk instead of laying eggs. Which would make them a lot more like us rather than like fish.”  
 Eren snorted. “Except they swim better.”  
 “No, but see there are some ocean-dwellers similar to us. Dolphins and whales appear to also breathe air as well.”  
 Eren looked at him dubiously.  
 Armin leaned in with a small smile. “You exist don’t you?”  
   
 Eren laughed and leaned against the bars. He seemed to relax more, his eyes looking at Armin softer.  
 “I thought you were going to ask about me,” he admitted, waving his tail up.  
 Armin ducked his head. “Well… I’m interested in that too, but there’s so much else to learn in the ocean!” He looked up at Eren, throwing his hesitance aside for a moment. “Please teach me as much as you can.” He could swear that Eren could hear his heart beating where he was, over the sound of the wind and water. The silence ate at him as Eren just stared at him.  
 At least until he dissolved into laughter and looked up at him. “You too, Armin. Please teach me about your world.”  
   
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope to see you all next week ;)


	4. Request

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren begins to learn more about the outside world, and the situation he's in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot the italics in some of the earlier chapters. They've been added now and hopefully I won't forget again.

Eren had learnt a few things from Armin. Time was one of the more interesting concepts, an odd thing to consider. It didn’t have any relevance to him normally, but somehow it was nice to know how long it would be until Armin returned. He only had to watch the ‘candle’ marks. When it was half done, Armin would come down and they would talk for one mark, or Armin would teach him more about ‘land’.  
   
 The metal that held him was ‘iron’ and was made with materials from the land. Armin suggested sending Hanji to explain the process to him, which he adamantly refused. That time passed all too quickly before Armin had to return up the ‘stairs’.  
   
 “Two-leggers are so bothersome,” he mumbled.  
 “Pardon?”  
 Eren looked up, not realising he had said anything.  
 “Is that what you call us? Two-leggers?”  
 Eren shrugged. “You have two legs that you walk on.”  
 Armin tapped his chin. “True enough, you wouldn’t see many others like that out in the ocean… but there are plenty of other creatures that walk on two legs as well. Several birds for example.”  
 “But they can fly, they don’t walk much.”  
   
 Armin’s cheeks puffed out. Eren had started calling that his thinking face.  
 “Well what do you call yourselves then?” Eren demanded, his tail flicking irritably. The cage was starting to feel too small and he was aching to actually _swim_.  
 Armin gave him a small smile. Eren found himself a little less irritated whenever Armin smiled like that. The boy always seemed to want to keep a distance between them. Eren knew that he was only longing to touch him because he hadn’t been around his pod for so long. He hadn’t realised how much all the little touches and games had meant until now.  
 “Humans.”  
 “What?” Eren forgot what they had been talking about.  
 “We call ourselves humans.”  
 “Oh.” Eren flicked water at some of the ‘boxes’ in boredom. “What do you call me?”  
 “Merfolk, well specifically a merman and females are called mermaids… the captain considers you _rarer_ because it’s typically the females seen at sea.”  
   
 Eren had to bite his lip to stop himself from commenting about Jean. Mostly females? Were there other pods besides them out there then? Would they help him find his pod when he got out?  
 “What do you call yourselves?” Armin pulled him out of his thoughts again.  
 Eren stared at him and opened his mouth, closing it quickly. It was getting too tempting to reveal information about his pod. Even if he was caught, he couldn’t risk the safety of the others.  
 “I’m an _aicaya_.”  
 “There aren’t any others?”  
 “Not that I’m aware of.” It wasn’t quite a lie. There weren’t any other _aicaya_ in their pod, he had been careful about that. The entire pod had been careful to keep him from the shores. Close enough to the boats that his curiosity would be sated, but far enough that he wouldn’t be drawn to them. This was a mistake, all of it was. He curled up, feeling so alone again, so cold.  
   
 “Are you okay, Eren?”  
   
 Eren looked up at Armin. “Why are you so far away all the time?” Eren whispered. “Am I so frightening?” He drew back into his corner, the cage slowly closing in on him. Armin was closer to the door, his mouth opening, then closing slowly. Eren decided that he didn’t want to talk anymore and slipped under the water.  
   
 The thundering was returning, but Eren stayed under the water to watch. The sound was muffled, but he could still understand it.  
 “Where is he?” Hanji asked.  
 “I think he ducked under,” Armin sounded stressed. Eren hurt at that thought, but Armin was confusing him too. He thought they were closer than this, but the young ‘human’ may have just been trying to get him to open up.  
   
 “Really? How long can he stay down there? Can he talk?”  
 “I really don’t know,” Armin definitely sounded a little panicked.  
 “Armin…”  
 Eren almost jolted out of the water at Hanji’s voice. It had dropped any pretence of playfulness and she was now approaching Armin like a shark.  
 “We had an agreement, Armin.”  
 Eren let the top half of his head rise above the water. Agreement? Armin seemed frantic, looking between her and Eren.  
 “Can we have this discussion later?” Armin squeaked.  
 “No. We’re having it now; or rather you’re having it now with the Captain upstairs.”  
 Armin seemed to relax slightly at that.  
 “In the meanwhile, I’ll stay here for your allotted time.” Hanji tilted her head slightly to the side and smiled widely. Even her smile reminded him of a shark.  
   
 Armin shuffled away, the candle flame seemed to flicker dimmer as he stepped heavily on the stairs.  
 Eren watched him go before his eyes flickered back to Hanji, crouching down to stare at him.  
 “Neh, Eren, you’ll talk to me too right?”  
 Eren didn’t feel like replying, so he simply twisted his tail to send a wave of water at her. He hated being down here, and she was one of the reasons he was trapped. He wasn’t entirely sure about Armin, but it seemed like he kept dancing around topics. Barely ever talking about Eren and his pod. He didn’t appreciate it until now, with Hanji firing question after question at him despite being utterly drenched.  
   
 He only slunk back to the boxes when he was too tired to even pretend with her anymore. He missed his pod. The water would be warm and caress him gently during the night, or day. He would find himself drifting towards Thomas, Mina or Jean. Some days they would even sleep together. He missed the smell of the sea, the wind that would touch his face when they talked. He missed the currents and the adrenaline that came from swimming against it in the middle of a storm.  
   
 He sighed as Hanji continued her barrage of questions. He wouldn’t give her the satisfaction. It was one of the few ways he felt he had left to assert himself. They all seemed to be keeping a distance from him. For some reason that hurt even more than being trapped down here, treated like some item.  
 He looked up again, startled to see the Captain down now as well, although far from the cage. It seemed he had learned his lesson, although he was still in reach.  
   
 “He was right though, it does look off.”  
 Eren glared at him. He didn’t really have much energy for more than that right now.  
 “What? No tail flick today?”  
 “I took that one already Levi.” Hanji chuckled.  
 “Ranks unless we’re alone,” Levi ordered.  
 “Who’s he going to tell? Unless you’re going to let Armin back in. Armin hasn’t been holding up his side _at all_ ,” Hanji whined.  
 “He hasn’t been holding up your side. He’s been holding up mine just fine.”  
 Eren stiffened. Armin had been helping him. His heart plummeted further. He really couldn’t trust anyone. He slipped back under the water, not wanting them to see his face.  
   
 “That’s right, did you really think a normal person would have been given permission to visit you unless we were getting something from it?”  
 “Captain,” Hanji warned.  
 He waved her off and stepped closer to the bars. “You’re going to make us all rich, people would pay just to see you; even more to touch you.”  
 Eren shivered under the water. He was starved for touch, but imagining so many strangers touching him gave him chills.  
   
 “Still not a peep huh?” Levi purred. “So you would be fine with that.”  
 The rush of anger gave Eren enough strength to send a half-wave at Levi. It was still enough to cover the man with water from head to toe. The water bubbled as Eren ducked down to laugh. He looked so put out and angry. Yet Levi didn’t make a single move. That scared him. He had only ever seen Ymir look like that when she was angry. It was mere moments after that where they could _hear_ the wind and sea ripping across the ocean with her fury.  
   
 Suddenly he wasn’t too sure what he was facing on this ship. Why Levi had permitted Armin to come visit, his only pleasure for now in this cage.  
 “Perhaps I should leave you to Hanji then,” Levi commented calmly.  
 Eren could see Hanji shiver from the front of the cage. That couldn’t be a good sign. Levi glanced at the light Armin had left. Eren froze, reading his intent in that look. He would survive in the dark, it wouldn’t make much difference. Except that he would imagine that it brought him warmth when the chills struck him.  
   
 “Take the candle with you when you’re done Hanji. No visible marks or scarring.”  
 Eren jolted.  
 Hanji shuddered with a wide grin. “I see… what would it take for me to enlist your help in cuffing him back to the wall then? I don’t think I can avoid injuring him if he’s fighting me. I don’t think you’d take it lying down, would you Eren?”  
   
 Eren stiffened, his eyes darting to the door of the cage and back to the wall. He would have a chance to escape out of the cage if they came in, but he would still be trapped in the dank ship.  
 “Well your other option is just to answer my questions instead of sitting there.” Hanji leaned back against a box. “You would nod and shake your head before. Why not now if you don’t want to talk? Is it that you have something that would affect us?”  
 Eren snorted. He did, but these humans didn’t deserve his ‘gift’ as Mikasa called it. He talked too much, he knew it and was avoiding it with his captors. He wouldn’t let them try to form a bond with him. He wouldn’t be strung along, made to believe they were _good_ people.  
   
 A small part of him realised he was lying to himself since he was talking to Armin. Except that their discussions were interesting, learning about the outside world and seeing the sea through different eyes. He knew that compared to Armin, these two only had an interest in what he was and if there was more of him.  
 “What about Armin?” Hanji continued. “You would like to see him again right?”  
 Eren stared at her.  
 “You do realise he wasn’t supposed to be here? That we’ve _let_ him come visit?”  
 Eren snarled.  
 “I think he understands,” Levi sounded amused now, a glint to his eyes that wasn’t there before.  
   
 Eren ignored the shivers down his frame to glare at him.  
 “We’ll see. How about you come over here? You don’t seem as well as before.”  
 “If not, well, maybe Armin will get sick enough to not come down here and ‘renew your candle’.”  
 Eren slunk forward sullenly. The water helped abate the chills, but made it all the worse later.  
   
 Hanji’s face turned to alarm as she turned to Levi. “I was right,” she whispered harshly.  
 “What the fuck do you want me to do about it?” Levi replied crossly.  
 Hanji ignored him to turn back to Eren. Her hand reached out and dropped. He felt himself sink in disappointment at the expectation, and denial of touch. “I need you to answer these few questions so we can take care of you better,” Hanji murmured. Her hand ran through her hair as Levi scoffed. “Despite how sourpuss there disagrees. We’re of two minds, he and I—”  
 “I’m right here,” Levi interrupted.  
 “Then kindly fuck off,” Hanji ordered. Levi stiffened as Hanji towered over him.  
 “This ship isn’t currently in battle, which leaves it in _my_ control right now Levi. We’re _both_ responsible for making sure that every _one_ and every _thing_ makes it back to shore.”  
   
 Levi practically stomped up the stairs. Eren’s eyes followed him.  
 “Eren, do you dive into deep waters?”  
 Eren’s eyes glanced back at Hanji, confused by the question. How could he know what he definition of deep was?  
 “Ah… would you know what I meant if I said warm-blooded or cold-blooded?”  
 Eren nodded slowly. The turtles that would bask on their rocks had cold blood, compared to theirs.  
 “Are you warm-blooded?”  
 He barely hesitated before nodding again.  
 Hanji sighed, sinking back on her heels.  
 “Okay, I’ll have to talk the Captain around. One last question, but this might be harder for you.”  
   
 Eren stared at her.  
 “Are you alright on your own?”  
 Her eyes never left his, but he couldn’t give her a suitable answer. He could fend for himself, surely enough. The loss of his pod was giving him some issues right now, but he didn’t imagine it would be detrimental in the long run.  
 “Like I thought, you don’t have an easy way of answering that huh?” Hanji gave a hard sigh. “Well, if you need something tell Armin. If you don’t do anything stupid Levi won’t deny your visits. Answer some of his questions about your people though, if not…” Her voice dropped and she gave him a far deadlier stare than Levi. “We’ll have to do something about it.”


	5. Desire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Armin gets to see Eren again after a long wait. Things don't turn out quite as he had hoped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A day early because my internet will be questionable tomorrow. Enjoy!

They were up to something, Armin knew that. Levi and Hanji were talking quietly among themselves. Well actually it was odder how they were being consistent. Hanji was quiet and Levi was loud, the reverse of the usual. They both went quiet whenever he drew near, even when he was observing the ship, or charting his maps. They would talk in frantic hushes, staring at him periodically after he would settle in to work.  
   
 What really worried him was the amount of work he was assigned during the time he would spend with Eren. Rigging would get gnarled, or they would be extremely off course. He wondered if there was something wrong with the ship, but surely Petra would have noticed. There was a good reason she was the boatswain. But, she would follow Levi’s order to the end. She could have changed the rigging so that they were going in a very different direction than desired.  
   
 “Arlert.”  
 Armin’s spine jolted up. He turned to face Levi. The captain and quartermaster hadn’t addressed him in the last few days, which usually meant trouble. Either he was in trouble, or they were letting him work quietly to fix their navigation issues.  
 “Yes captain?”  
 “We won’t wait for answers much longer. He should be more open.”  
 Armin stared at the captain. He knew they had gone down before; actually he was surprised he wasn’t flayed again. “May I—”  
 “No,” Hanji interrupted. She glanced at Levi, barely tilting her head to the side.  
 Levi huffed and stalked off the deck.  
 “I need you to ask some details for me,” Hanji demanded. She held up a hand as Armin opened his mouth.  
   
 “He hasn’t been very open to any of us about his physical or emotional needs.” She ran her tongue across her lips. “He’s definitely too cold down there, but I’m hesitant to have him bake on the top deck. There’s still the issue of restraining his motion that Levi and I have been working out.”  
 Armin stiffened. Eren hadn’t told him any of that. He had never even had the impression that the other was cold. But he did seem… “You said something about emotional needs as well?” His voice barely squeaked out of his throat, sticking to the edges of it.  
   
 Hanji sighed and leaned against the railing. “He looked sick. Really sick, but I don’t know if it’s just the chill of the water down there, if he caught a cold or if there’s something other mermaids provide him with that we aren’t providing.”  
 Armin bit his lips. “If it is something like companionship… the captain gave his orders.”  
 Hanji laughed. “The captain is an idiot that doesn’t understand that some creatures in the world require constant companionship or they’ll waste away.” She touched a finger to her lips and winked. “Just don’t get caught.”  
   
 A vice around Armin’s heart released. It had been so difficult to keep away from the _aicaya_. Especially when he looked like he just wanted to reach out to touch Armin, to be assured he wasn’t alone. He took some measure of pleasure in keeping that name from them as well.  
 “I understand,” he murmured.  
 “Good. Dismissed. Petra has everything in hand. We should be at port soon enough.”  
 There was a squawk and laughs from the deck.  
 His heart pounded faster as he carefully put away his maps. He managed to commandeer another candle, although he didn’t take the time to mark it.  
   
 Eren had been alone long enough. He almost tripped down the stairs in his haste. The flame on the candle flickered more than once and he was breathless by the time he splashed in the water. “Eren?” he called. He came close to the cage with the candle, letting its light fill all the corners.  
   
 Then he was seeing double as his head clanged against the bars. It was hard to breathe. He grappled at his neck, some part of him refusing to drop the candle. Dark green eyes glowed malevolently at him, the gold scales gleaming as Eren rose to Armin’s height.  
 “You lied,” he whispered. “I can’t trust you. I can’t… I can’t…”  
 Armin could feel the tears leaking out of his eyes. He didn’t want to die, but he couldn’t fault Eren’s thinking. Eren was stuck on this pirate ship, just like him, but had no way of knowing if that was true or not. To know that he _did_ care about Eren. Armin sucked in a breath as the grip slackened slightly. He was able to focus slightly on Eren, staring at one of the tears on his hand.  
   
 “What is this?”  
 Armin took in a gulp of air now that his throat wasn’t being completely crushed. It was still difficult to speak, but at least he could now. “Tears, salt water from eyes. Humans have them to clear out their eyes from things that fall in or… or when they’re in emotional distress.”  
 Eren stared at him, and let his grip slacken further. Armin sucked in more air, coughing as he collapsed to the floor.  
   
 He jolted as arms found their way around him.  
 “You’re warm,” Eren murmured. Armin gave a weak laugh.  
 “I wondered. You never got close before, and just before…” Eren trailed off. Armin could hear the pain in his voice. For him to return unharmed after such a long period of time, at the very least he owed Eren an explanation.  
 “I’m sorry… just… I have rules I have to follow. I was too afraid to break them before.”  
 Eren’s eyes went wide and his hands stroked Armin’s arms. It felt odd, but nice in a way. Armin couldn’t remember the last time he was held like this, like he was worth something.  
   
 “Hanji said—” Armin began.  
 “ _Aicaya_ live in the light, where the algae grows. The water’s always warm and when the storms hit, we use rocks as shelter.”  
 It sounded rehearsed, like he had practiced it the entire time Armin had been gone. Armin leaned out of Eren’s arms as he remembered Hanji’s orders to check if Eren might be sick.  
   
 Eren looked hurt as he pulled away, then confused as Armin placed a hand on his forehead. It was warm, very warm.  
 “How warm are you normally? Compared to my skin?” Armin placed one of Eren’s hands on his own forehead.  
 Eren’s forehead was creased as answered. “About the same, but warmer when the winds blow cold.”  
 Armin sucked in a breath. Eren was definitely sick; they would have to restock on their remedies. Except that his biology might react badly to them.  
   
 Armin stared as Eren pressed on one of his lips, pulling it out from his teeth.  
 “You’re hurting yourself,” Eren explained.  
 “Eren, what do you do when you’re sick?”  
 Eren stared at him, eyes blank.  
 “You’re warmer than you should be, a lot warmer.”  
 “Isn’t that because I’m cold?”  
 Armin shook his head. “No, it’s something the body does when it’s… not well.”  
 Eren stared at the cage. His tail was flipping side to side while he was thinking. Perhaps it was something all merfolk did, but it could also be one of Eren’s quirks. Armin jumped slightly as Eren’s pressed against the cage, like he was trying to get as close as possible to Armin.  
 Armin hesitated for a moment before wrapping his own arms around Eren. The _aicaya_ gave a deep sigh and tugged the back of Armin’s shirt.  
   
 Armin drew closer and jumped as Eren nuzzled his neck. He certainly wasn’t used to this much contact with anyone.  
 “Sorry,” Eren mumbled against his skin. “You’re just… warm.”  
 Armin smiled and ran a hand through Eren’s hair. “It’s okay… I’ll just duck under water before going back up.”  
 “Why?”  
 “I’m not supposed to touch you,” Armin admitted. He blinked for a moment at the loss of warmth on his neck. It was odd how comfortable he’d been with Eren there all of a sudden.  
   
 “That’s why…” Eren looked confused, but excited as well. Then Armin found that he was being pressed against the bars fighting for breath again. He was surprised that Eren’s arms weren’t stronger, but he supposed it had something to do with why he didn’t use his arms. Although…  
 “I thought you didn’t use your arms for swimming, why was your grip so strong?”  
 Eren smiled sheepishly and loosened his grip on Armin.  
 “Clams.”  
 Armin stared. Eren only ate greens until now.  
 “But you—” Armin’s sentence was cut off as Eren clamped a hand over his mouth. His eyes were wide, frightened. That answered Armin’s question easily enough. There were other _aicaya_. No, there were other species of merfolk.  
 Armin patted Eren’s hand, hoping he could feel his smile behind it.  
   
 His hand was slowly removed, but Eren had curled up defensively. Armin wasn’t sure how he could get him to open up again.  
 “I only had my mom and dad growing up. We were good friends with a merchant and we weren’t even going very far.” Armin swallowed the lump forming in his throat. “They tried to protect me, attacked them. H-Hanji says that if they hadn’t w-we would have b-been fine.” Armin curled up, letting Eren pet his hair soothingly.  
 “T-they saw my maps,” Armin admitted. “T-they n-needed a good n-navigator.” He wiped away some of the tears that were forming. He jolted as Eren’s hot forehead touched his own.  
 “I… I don’t want to be here,” he admitted. “I just… I wanted to see the ocean. I—” he hiccupped. Eren snorted at it and Armin tried to smile as another hiccup forced its way out.  
 “It’s not your fault,” Eren murmured. “You didn’t kill them.”  
 “It was w-why w-we were there.”  
 “So?” Eren planted a kiss against his forehead, making Armin freeze. Were they all so affectionate?  
 Armin sighed, he really didn’t have an answer for that. He still felt the guilt heavy in his chest.  
   
 “Eren?”  
 “Mm?”  
 “Are you like this with others?” Armin could hear Eren’s tail swishing back and forth in the water, almost like a cat’s tail. He bit his lip to stop from giggling. Eren probably hadn’t even seen a cat before, so he’d have a hard time to explain why he was laughing.  
 “Like what?”  
 “Do you touch everyone so much?”  
 “That isn’t normal?”  
 “Not among humans, unless they’re in a special relationship.”  
 “Relationship?”  
 Armin ducked his head to hide his smile. “Well, that’s hard to explain… It’s how two people interact with each other. There are a few types…” Armin tilted his head slightly, taking the moment to think. “Some relationships are in regards to family… and then there are people you aren’t related to.”  
 Eren’s eyes lit up, as they always did when he understood the concept. Armin smiled; he liked to see that eager look back on Eren’s face.  
 “So in families there’s brother, sister—”  
 “I know those,” Eren interrupted. “What about others?”  
 “Well there’s friends that are people that get along well together. Enemies don’t, then there are different levels in that.”  
 Eren nodded slowly. “Can you change from one type of relation to another?”  
 Armin nodded. “Some friends become enemies, and some enemies can become friends.”  
 “You would be a good friend,” Eren hummed, a silly grin crossing his face. Armin ducked his head as his face heated up.  
 “Are all your people so blunt?” he mumbled.  
 Eren mumbled in return, his grip slackening.  
 “Eren?” Armin shook him lightly. Eren hadn’t ever fallen asleep on him before, in fact he would guess that Eren looked forward to their hour.  
 Armin placed his hand against Eren’s forehead again. He was far too hot. But Armin couldn’t even reach him.  
   
 “What do I do?” he whispered, hugging Eren closer to him. He had to get help, but there weren’t any medications on board.  
 “Stay,” Eren whispered back. Armin stiffened, holding him even closer.  
 “W-what would you do if one of you was sick?” Armin stammered. Eren looked up at him; his eyes were unfocused now. The sooner they got to port the better.  
 “Me,” Eren murmured.  
 “What?”  
 Eren held him even tighter. “I helped them.”  
 Armin sucked in a breath. He couldn’t let them know that now. Or, perhaps it would work in their favour. The ship lacked a doctor, if merfolk biology was similar, perhaps Eren would be able to serve as their surgeon.  
 “Eren, I have to talk to them, we have to get you better.”  
   
 “Better to stay and not say anything,” Eren mumbled.  
 “It’s better if you live! If you live you can fight another day!”  
 Eren looked at him tiredly. “Is that what you’re doing?”  
 “Yes.” Armin sounded far more certain than he actually felt. “I’ll make sure you survive, that you return to everyone.”  
 Eren smiled weakly, his hand grasping Armin’s lightly. “I look forward to it.”


	6. Sickness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren gets worse before things get better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had a few questions about the type of cage that Eren's been in. It's a lattice steel cage, located under the deck. If you've seen Pirates of the Caribbean, exactly like that.

Eren wondered when it had become so hard to breathe the air. He knew he was sleeping more lately, waking up to see the candles burnt low. Armin had been coming by more often, with Hanji and Levi in tow. He was oddly aware of silence around him when they left. He wasn’t sure how long it had been so quiet. It was as if the ship were only being moved by the gentlest of waves instead of the constant pounding he had gotten used to.  
   
 The silence was just as easy to drift off to. So much that he almost gulped water into his lungs when he felt the slap of the water at the end of a fall. The sudden sting faded into warmth that surrounded him and he could taste the salt in his mouth as he sank. He clawed his way to air, resisting the urge to cough and breathe in more water. He barely noticed the arms below him, helping him to reach the surface. He finally broke the surface, coughing even as warm arms surrounded him, preventing him from falling under again.  
   
 He blinked as he looked up, the bright sun hurting his eyes. The arms weren’t letting him turn away, trapped him.  
 “Close your eyes.” Armin’s voice resonated, making his head pulse in pain. He whimpered, clutching at those arms. He was in the ocean. So close, he was so close to being free, but he lacked the strength to leave.  
 “I’m-sorry-I’m-sorry-I’m-sorry,” Armin murmured by his ear. “I can’t let you go. I won’t let you go. Rest.”  
 Eren blinked up at him. He could hear other voices around, but they faded out as he focused on Armin’s voice calling to him.  
   
 A small smile danced on his face. If there was anything good about being sick, it would be this. Armin was out, his feet touching land for the first time since he’d been taken. Eren gave Armin’s arm a light tug. He wanted to see the water, see the beauty in the sand and rocks. Armin seemed to understand and called over his shoulder before gently lowering Eren so that he was in the water.  
   
 A pang resonated in his chest. If he was better he would have just left and taken Armin with him. He would have shown him the shelves far from humans that teemed with life. They would dance with the whales and fish. Instead he was stuck, weighed down by his illness. The warmth and salt of the water was starting to seep in, and he could do at least one last thing underwater, before he had to return to the ship. He wasn’t strong enough to survive on his own yet. So he trilled a song. Krista had taught it to him long ago, in case something ever went wrong. ‘ _I’m alive._ ’  
   
 He expected to be suddenly yanked out of the water for the song, but he didn’t think Armin would be suddenly ripped away from him.  
 “What did you do?” Levi was holding Eren up by his hair. Eren coughed, his hand barely grasping Levi’s arm. He couldn’t actually focus. All he could see were glimpses of steel and a blur of black before he was shaken.  
 “Answer, you shit.”  
 “Levi!” Hanji’s voice carried a note of urgency.  
 The steel vanished to leave black in Eren’s field of vision. Levi had probably turned away to look.  
 “There’s so many!” Hanji called gleefully. Eren tried to look at the water, but Levi’s grip prevented him from getting much more than a glimpse.  
 “What the fuck are they doing here?” Levi growled.  
 Hanji was splashing around in glee. “Levi~!”  
 “Fine, take however many you want.”  
   
 Eren was dragged backwards through the water so that he could finally see the water. It wasn’t moving normally, as if something else was filling it. Angel fish, Krista’s favourite fish, and the ones that she could hear over the longest distance. Were they close to the pod if she had heard him so quickly? Dangerous, it was dangerous for them to be here. He couldn’t lead these pirates back to the pod even if he did escape.  
   
 A smile drifted across his face as he let a hand drift in the water. One of the fish nudged it and then the sea of yellow faded from the water.  
 “Aw,” Hanji moaned. “I only caught three.”  
 “We need to get going.” Armin’s voice was frantic. Eren didn’t understand why.  
 “Get it into that fucking container already then. My room.” Levi sounded absolutely disgusted.  
 “Yes Captain!” Eren didn’t recognise the voice as he was thrown back into the water, into another set of arms.  
   
 Eren’s tail flailed automatically as he was placed into something.  
 “It’s so you can be out of the hold, Eren, don’t struggle,” Armin advised. Eren blinked and touched the edge of the container. It was strange, made of metal and he could see the ocean through it.  
 “If you fight you won’t be seeing Armin for a few days while we get your ass back on the ship,” Levi advised. Eren laughed, before it turned into a hacking cough. He didn’t have the strength to swim, let alone fight.  
   
 “Eeeeeh! You have such a beautiful voice Eren!” Hanji cried in his ear. Eren flinched, hiding behind the clear cage.  
 “Hanji! Please go easy on him!”  
 “Eh? But I need to know how to treat him. There are times when you’ve gotten sick too right Eren?”  
 Eren blinked at her and finally came up to breathe in the air before shaking his head. He hadn’t gotten sick before. There had been times that Krista or Mina got sick and the entire pod cared for them.  
 “Is there anything you remember?” Armin asked. Eren stared at him. Armin looked worried, like he had a hard time trying to word that, but why? He turned to look. Oh, right, Armin knew about his pod, that he cared for them.  
 “Is there anything you _want?_ ”  
 “How the fuck would that help Arlert?” Levi demanded  
 “Our bodies can crave something that helps, something it needs,” Armin defended. “It may be consistent over species and we have _no_ information outside of what he gives us.”  
   
 Something he needed. Eren blinked and tried to lift himself out of the container. He was too wet. The air was too damp. Krista and Mina would spend as much time as they could out of the water, and it was one of the few times that Krista would eat meat. Even then, it was just the birds they could catch or scavenged meat rather than live fish. For Mina he had ventured to the corals and taken parts for her to suck on. Either way, he needed to be out of the water.  
 “Eren! What are you doing?” Armin had grabbed him, good.  
 Eren wrapped his arms around the younger’s body, doing his best to lift himself up. His tail managed to wrap around Armin’s body.  
 “C-c-captain?” Armin stuttered.  
 Eren buried his face in Armin’s neck. “Dry,” he breathed. Armin stiffened, his arms hesitating before wrapping around Eren.  
 “I… I can’t carry you on the ship, Eren,” he whispered. “I’m not strong enough.”  
 Eren whined as he was pried off Armin, facing strawberry-blonde hair this time.  
 “I’ll take him back to the ship then, Captain.”  
   
 He heard Levi click his tongue before Hanji drew in and Eren could feel his body swaying back and forth like it was being carried by the waves.  
 “We’ll make a nest of blankets for him in Levi’s room and have the container nearby if he needs to get into the water then. Can you lift yourself into it Eren?” Hanji sidled alongside them.  
 Eren stared at her. He had no idea if he could even lift himself up right now.  
 “I’ll stay with you then Eren. There’s not much I can do on the ship now anyways. We’re going to be at port for a while to scour the ship.” The blonde sounded wistful.  
   
 Eren blinked, not really understanding, but too tired to figure out a way to ask.  
 “It’s to remove anything stuck under the boat.”  
 Eren’s tail waved happily at Armin’s voice.  
 “Armin! You’re returning to the ship?” the girl asked.  
 “I have to.” Armin sounded bitter. “Today was an exception since Eren wouldn’t hurt me.”  
 It sounded like he was repeating something someone told him.  
 “I don’t think he really could hurt anyone,” the blonde commented.  
 Hanji burst out laughing beside her. Eren cringed as the sound shook his head.  
 “Hanji,” the girl scolded. “He’s sick, be nice.”  
 Hanji waved her off. “This guy’s challenged Levi at least twice by splashing him head to toe. Even when sick. But Eren, really what was that trill? Did you call those fish? Were you lonely?”  
   
 “Hanji slow down,” Armin ordered. Hanji stared at him and Eren felt a shiver roll down his body until she laughed.  
 Armin took charge of the conversation.  
 “Did you call those fish?” Armin repeated. Eren gave a small smile that Hanji let Armin participate. Except that he wasn’t sure how to answer it. He didn’t actually call those fish, but revealing who sent them was far more dangerous. He finally shook his head gently.  
 “Were they there because you were?”  
 Eren blinked and his smile grew wider as he nodded. It was a careful question, and he was certain that Armin would ask many more later.  
 “That storm is rolling in oddly quickly,” the girl noted.  
 “That’s part of why we wanted to get Eren out of the water quickly and into shelter,” Armin admitted. Storm? Eren shifted slightly to look at the sky. Black was roiling in to block all light, with a hint of purple leading the clouds. That was the colour of Mikasa’s magic.  
   
 Hope and horror filled Eren’s heart. They were close if the fish had already gotten the message through. The storm was another sign, or maybe Ymir and Mikasa were that pissed off. The _cecaelia_ hated humans, and knowing that he was captured by them would have infuriated one, or both of them. How close were they?  
 “Eren, you know what’s causing that storm, don’t you?” Hanji’s voice lowered. The shiver returned. “Or should I say _who?_ ”  
 Eren stiffened and then Hanji pulled away, laughing.  
 “Well! That definitely answered that question. You _do_ live in groups.”  
 Eren turned away, his heart going heavy.  
   
 “So, this is their doing,” she continued.  
 Eren flinched away from Hanji.  
 “Enough Quartermaster.” The blonde’s tone was firm, her grip tightened on him. “He needs time to recover, and if you keep acting like that he’ll get worse, not better.”  
 He could feel Hanji’s disappointment as her head tilted to the sky though.  
 “You know some scary people though Eren. If we lose the ship… well I just hope you realise the first one you’d probably lose is Armin.”  
 “Armin is like our guide on the sea,” the blonde explained. “When things get bad he has to be there to guide the ship.”  
   
 Eren’s breath hitched. For a moment he saw Armin being the first one lost in a storm. He glanced up at the sky; there wasn’t anything he could do though. Mikasa and Ymir could be several leagues away and had that storm brewing, just waiting for him to hit the water. Actually it could be Mikasa’s way of scolding him for making them worry like that, or for getting caught. He giggled at that thought. It would be very like Mikasa to jump the gun once they heard Eren’s voice, not waiting for the fish to return to Krista. He was surprised that Hanji had even caught three. Maybe Krista wanted to keep an eye on him… except that those fish might not survive their encounter with the crazy woman.  
   
 “My name is Petra, “the girl carrying him finally addressed him directly. “I’m the _Relentless’_ boatswain.”  
 Armin jumped in at Eren’s puzzled look. “Petra is in charge of maintaining the ship’s condition. She’s one of the few that meets up to Levi’s standards for most operation of the ship.”  
 Eren blinked as they went up the ramp. Armin sounded envious of her abilities; he didn’t expect that Armin would actually _like_ anyone on the ship. Then again, maybe he switched between his feelings like Eren was. He had brief moments where he felt that Armin really wasn’t too different from him.  
   
 He jumped slightly at the soft feeling on his skin.  
 “You can let go now Eren,” Petra urged. “I’ll be staying here with you as well as Armin. If you need anything feel free to ask.”  
 He looked pleadingly towards Armin, his gaze darting to Petra. He had said too much already with only actually talking to one person.  
 “Hanji has more of an idea that what she’s saying,” Armin admitted. “There isn’t that much to lose anymore by talking.”  
   
 Eren drooped, letting his head sink into the softness.  
 “I’m sorry,” Armin whispered.  
 “You knew?” Petra asked calmly. Eren could imagine Armin looking away and trying to cover up for him.  
 “Coral,” he whispered. Silence fell across the room. He wouldn’t let Armin get in trouble for his decisions, not when they had helped Eren so much already.  
 “When—” He was interrupted by a flurry of coughs that racked his frame. Armin’s warm hands ran through his hair gently. Eren took a few breaths before he tried to continue. The words hurt to get out now.  
 “When she was sick… meat and coral.”  
 He could hear the rapping of boots against the floor, but Armin’s hands were still running through his hair.  
 “She’s giving Hanji the order to get some,” Armin whispered. “I’m here. I’ll stay here until you get better.”  
 Eren only hoped that he would, even as a small part of him decided that it would be better to die as the first raindrops pattered on the ship.  
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are going to start getting interesting now. I hope to see you all next week again!


	7. Change in Wind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The storm doesn't stop, but only gets worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Additional help from thingsishouldntbedoing that yes, that is right and no it doesn't look weird. I'm glad you're all enjoying so far and all your comments make me happy <3.
> 
> I also almost forgot the italics again

Levi huffed. The _Relentless_ had been stuck at port for far too long for his liking now. The storm had rolled in far too quickly to be normal. Even the little Navigator Shit had been caught off guard. The one good thing about those infernal clouds was that it enabled their goods to recover. He found his gaze drifting over to _it. It_ was finally able to stay in its container for most of the day, to his relief. He had hated drying out those sheets in stale air while the storm beat at the ship.  
   
 The stupid thing had something to do with the storm, he knew it. But it wouldn’t answer his demands, despite being more than willing now to talk to the Little Shit and the Overeager Idiot. He tapped a finger on his desk irritably as the golden scales reflected his candlelight. It was a real problem now, trying to keep the goods warm enough that they would still be good on arrival, but healthy enough by leaving enough space to move. They had lost a significant amount of profit by buying the container, but he supposed he could just tack it onto the price when he sold it.  
   
 It would be more than enough to get the Irritating Commodore off his back. His eyes drifted up from his desk to the Little Shit, watching him teach the stupid Fish how to write. Teaching seemed to make the Little Shit happy though, he hadn’t seen him light up like that for quite some time now. But catch one stupid Fish and there’s rarely a day without a smile on his face.  
   
 Levi might admit he was jealous, a fish taking up all of the shit’s time. Except that it might be better. The Irritating Commodore wouldn’t mind more interaction between those two, but him on the other hand… Levi found himself glancing to where he knew the Dog was keeping an eye, or rather a nose out.  
   
 Levi huffed. He hated having the other dog his steps. The Commodore’s Dog might actually be a better name for him now that he thought about it.  
 “Is everything alright, Captain?” the Little Shit asked.  
 Levi glanced up to see the sea staring back at him. “Fine,” he replied gruffly. “I just want to get out of this storm.”  
 The Fish seemed to cast an eye at him fearfully at that. He let himself smirk; it was good that the Fish had some idea of fear of him now. He let it think he would push more about its life, but he was quite pleased to let the Overeager Idiot and Little Shit pull the information out of him. He had noticed its extreme unwillingness to talk when he was in the room though. It seemed it had removed all pretences and was talking to the most annoying person on the seas. At the same time, her over-eagerness had led to some profit.  
   
 He leaned his chin on a hand. Yes, without her interference he wouldn’t have been able to see the Little Shit smile like that again. He tempered her enthusiasm and she relayed his words more diplomatically. The crew seemed happy like that, voting them in as the Captain and Quartermaster each year. He hadn’t heard any dissent recently despite their newest acquisition. Actually he was a little happy everyone was still a little wary around the Dog. Perhaps that was just his wariness rubbing off on the crew.  
   
 He stared out at the storm again. He had even caught up on his paperwork since the storm started.  
 “It will blow over, Captain,” the Little Shit assured him. He glanced back at the two to see that the Fish was staring at him from in its tank.  
 “Hopefully sooner rather than later.”  
 He wasn’t imagining it. That was definitely a fearful look in the Fish’s eyes as it looked out the window. “Maybe it can stop it early though,” he drawled.  
 The blond stiffened, casting an eye back at the Fish. “Um, no, Hanji and I have ascertained it can’t.”  
 Levi clicked his tongue. The Overeager Idiot agreed with him about that. He couldn’t shake the feeling that the Fish had done something sneaky in the water though. Something beyond calling all those colourful fish. The Idiot had had a field day and he had to put up with her incessant whining about ‘not a large enough sample size’. He was surprised that the three were all still alive.  
   
 His gaze darted up at the door as it banged open. He cringed inwardly as water sprayed all over the floor. Except that all his crew knew his dislike for unnecessary messes, so for such carelessness there must be a good reason.  
 “What is it?” Levi folded his hands on top of one another and rested his chin on them. The Little Shit looked extremely nervous, but the Fish seemed to be trying to peer out the door. He would have to put an end to that curiosity. It wasn’t going to get off the ship.  
   
 “Captain! The winds are picking up! If we don’t leave soon, Petra says we _will_ lose most of the mast!”  
 “Shit,” Levi swore.  
 “Captain…” the Little Shit trailed off. The Fish seemed to pick up in interest.  
 “You’re coming with me. Get the Dog down so that we have a better idea of timing. You' know what to do.”  
 “Yes.”  
 Levi didn’t miss the downcast tone to the blond’s answer as he left his quarters. He could hear bubbles rising behind him as well. The Fish was probably blowing them in annoyance.  
   
 He was careful to close and lock the door behind him, just in time as a gale whipped across the deck.  
 “Shit, what the fuck did that thing do,” Levi swore.  
 “It wasn’t him!” The spectacled idiot swung down to meet him. “We grilled him pretty good about that. Eren’s abilities lie more in healing, but it seems that he wasn’t really given time to practice. So we have no idea what extent—”  
 “I don’t give a fuck. Why am I out here?”  
 “Twenty minutes until the peak of the storm gets here.” The Dog spoke up.  
 The Little Shit was dragging himself along the rail, eyes up to the sky.  
 “Auruo, Petra! Cast us off!” Hanji called.  
 “If we cast off now we might get dashed on the rocks!” Petra called back.  
 “Five minutes!” The Little Shit screamed back at them. “If we wait five minutes the forces might be able to whip us out to sea.”  
 Petra looked up at Levi, and he stared into the waves before nodding once.  
 “Get it done boys! I want those sails and riggings to be ready at a moment’s notice! Keep an eye on your footing because we won’t be coming back for you! Hanji! Maybe…”  
 Levi glanced over at the Overeager Idiot. She was almost bouncing in excitement staring at him.  
 “It might get us out of here faster. Do it.”  
   
 He turned to climb up to the deck. It was one of the times he really appreciated his height. At sea it was convenient. He could hear the groaning of the ship as the slates opened and oars stuck out.  
   
 “At your order Captain!” Hanji was standing at her own steering wheel. She was brilliant to come up with the concept, insane to go through with it. There was a good reason that the _Relentless_ was never caught, and was only know to the navy by rumour. Specific rumour propagated by the fucking Commodore.  
 “Bring us to the storm,” he ordered. She cackled and flipped a switch. The man-powered oars were directed not by drumbeats or whips. There was a reason he gave every survivor of a raid a choice. The _Relentless_ had a contraption that required the extra manpower. They could die, or help power the ship. The oars were driven by bicycles, far kinder on the body according to the idiot. In return they were fed well, although not permitted off the ship for a period of time.  
   
 Some like Petra and Auruo showed great aptitude for other tasks after time and would be promoted through the ranks. Enough died during their escapades that there was the chance for promotion and the _Relentless_ would never stop. Many told him it was actually kinder, he supposed the freed slaves felt that way. There was only one truly unwilling person on board. He felt his eyes drift to the Drenched Shit. A tingle crossed his skin before he tore his gaze away and gripped the wheel harder.  
   
 At Petra’s signal the sails were dropped and every pirate stopped to watch as the ship swung hard to the rocks. That was fine, so long as he could control her properly. This storm was going to throw something strange at him; he could feel it in the spray. Hanji seemed worried, casting her gaze up every now and then as he waited longer than usual before trying to swing them back out to sea.  
   
 There was a single close call where three were thrown overboard. He clicked his tongue in annoyance, and then suddenly the sky cleared.  
 “That isn’t normal,” he muttered.  
 “Hell it isn’t,” Hanji agreed, flipping the switch off. It was unfortunate this was meant as only a quick stop, and as such they wouldn’t have much to use to thank their ‘engine’.  
 “Give those below my regards,” he called to the deck. His mate scampered quickly to pass along the message.  
   
 The storm cracked in the distance and they turned to look. It drifted up higher in the sky, growing darker with light flashing down and striking down at the sea. Then a piercing wail resounded over the water, sending waves towards the ship. Then all the darkness faded to a clear sky.  
   
 Levi could feel his heart pounding in his chest at the wail. Something in it sounded so primal, yet so…  
 “Touching. Heartbreaking. Resounding,” The Idiot listed off.  
 “Shut the fuck up!” He leaned over the railing to hiss down at the idiot. She shook off her glasses and stared back at the cove.  
 “I don’t think I’ll ever forget that sound,” she admitted quietly. Levi snorted, sounding braver than he felt. He was stepping off the deck when a resounding crack filled the air. They all turned to watch in horror as the cliffside that hid the port careened into the water, damming it.  
   
 “I don’t know who we pissed off, but lets not do it again,” the Idiot advised.  
 Levi snorted. “ _Who_ wanted to bring the fucking Fish on board?”  
 She frowned down at him. “I wasn’t going to pass by the opportunity, and you only see profit!”  
 Levi felt his heart sink and he turned to unlock his door. “Well, that won’t be for much longer.”  
 “Levi? What do you me—” He shut the door in her face, turning the lock easily.  
   
 The Fish was in its tank, looking quite forlorn.  
 “Your shitty rescue mission failed it seems,” he drawled. It flinched back from him before glancing at the sky. It still didn’t want to talk to him, fine. He smirked, he didn’t really mind but he wondered how far he could push the Fish before it said _something_.  
   
 “They did a shitty job even trying. It was a breeze to get through.”  
 “Captain?” The Little Shit’s voice drifted through the door.  
 “You need to see to the course first _navigator_.”  
 “Yes Captain.”  
 Levi could hear the sulk in his voice. What surprised him more was how the Fish had curled up at that order, like it had physically hurt him.  
   
 “Oh? I thought you just enjoyed learning. Have you gotten attached to our _navigator?_ ” Levi asked. It turned around to look at him hurtfully. At least he guessed it was a hurtful look.  
 “Don’t.” Levi looked out the window, away from the Fish. “He doesn’t belong to any of us.”  
 He meant to say that stronger than he had, instead of flat with a hint of longing that crept into his voice.  
   
 He heard the Fish rise out of the water. He turned to look at it, but it seemed to just stare at him before slinking back into the water and staring at the door, waiting for the blue-eyed blond to return.  
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -laughs madly- I know at least one person just wanted Eren safe at the cost of the ship, not yet I'm afraid. See you next week 8D. What WILL Eren do now that his rescue failed? (I don't remember I'll have to read it again)


	8. Complications

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Light flares for a moment before things get worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another early chapter since I maaaay not remember on Thursday or I won't have internet. Or a combination of the two. Thanks to Remembrance123 for continually kicking my butt into gear.

The storm had scared Eren. He could feel the rage in the storm, empty of the care and love that Mikasa and Ymir had shown him. He regretted laughing at Jean for being so terrified of the two. He understood now what he had meant about the two being frightening in the right circumstances.  
   
 He wouldn't let any of them know that though, especially Armin. He didn't need the other to know how terrified he had been that he would be thrown overboard. That Mikasa and Ymir might kill the one person that made his life on this insufferable vessel better, and leave him stuck.  
   
 He sighed and draped over the edge of his container. It was both more and less comfortable in the odd contraption. He was no longer freezing, but he had less room to move around. Oh and he had the _pleasure_ of dealing with an insufferable prick. He had no idea what a 'prick' was, but it sounded interesting rolling off of Levi's tongue. The way he had spat it out when he forgot Eren was here.  
   
 He glanced over at the man now. He was shuffling through several papers. They seemed to get along just fine when they were ignoring each other's presence.  
   
 Eren shifted slightly, pondering splashing the man again for the fun of it. He had such amusing reactions when he was wet.  
 "Don't even think about it, fish," Levi warned. The steel bit into his eyes and Eren ducked back under the water. He didn't really need to do it as often as he was, but it seemed to be a good way to avoid talking to anyone. He just had to make sure he didn't fall asleep.  
   
 He carefully let out small amounts of air, watching the bubbles rise and break the surface. He had to think of some way to protect Armin. He knew one way for certain. Except...  
   
 Eren twisted to look at Levi. He could guarantee that Armin wouldn't drown, but his chances of survival if Eren wasn’t with him would be low. Armin would die just as quickly. So he had to figure out if Mikasa and Ymir were angry with the people that had taken him, or just angry he had been taken.  
   
 They were all fucked one way or the other, and Eren might as well stay on the stupid boat for some hope of escaping their wrath. The other... Armin would still be at risk, but he could have the chance of saving him. He could reason with them. As much as he could reason anyways.  
   
 "Stop that."  
 Eren almost inhaled the water. He had forgotten he was blowing bubbles to annoy the hell out of Levi. He twisted around to give Levi a confused look. Levi gripped his pen tighter, staring him down.  
 "You know what you're doing. Don't pretend you don't."  
 Eren let out another 'glub', snickering as the pen shattered in Levi's grip and the ink sprayed all over his papers.  
   
 Paper, there was something he wished he could have used.  
   
 He smiled wistfully as Levi started one of his tirades again and Eren only turn to face the door. He didn't know that humans had a method to record their information. His pod only carried songs they knew in their bones. Their instincts drove them. He knew he was an _aicaya_ only from the resonance in his body, just as he could identify others.  
   
 He hadn't told them any of it. It was with reluctance that he admitted to some healing ability. His songs seemed to put his patients in a daze, numb the pain. He didn't give any specifics, but he worried that the next time they were near land some stories might make their way to Hanji. Armin would only be interested, but Hanji was ruthless.  
   
 He yelped as green wafted into his view suddenly and he rose to glare at Levi, looking very smug.  
 "Your dinner," Levi drawled. Eren slipped halfway back into the water, sulking.  
   
 The turn of the door had him perk up though. It was about the time Hanji and Armin came around, right? He looked over his shoulder at Levi for a moment, hoping he was right.  
   
 Levi sighed, settling into his stance. "You don't have to be so terrified Arlert."  
 "Sorry Captain. Hanji's doing inventory and can't come... is it still alright if I come and talk to Eren?"  
 Levi sighed, but Eren kept his gaze on the door. If he looked too hopeful to Levi, he would forbid it just to get back at him for his fun annoying him.  
   
 "Fine, maybe then he'll stop irritating me."  
 "I'll talk to him about it captain."  
 Eren smiled as Armin stepped in as Levi left. He could see Armin stare quizzically at Levi's black hands.  
 "What did you do?" Armin asked as he closed the door behind him.  
 "Blew bubbles."  
 Armin stared at him before bursting into a fit of giggles. "He's going to be in a bad mood for the rest of the day though."  
 Eren shrugged. "Why do you always call him captain?"  
   
 "I have to," Armin murmured. "I got in trouble when I didn't."  
 Eren frowned, resting his head on his arms. "He isn't so stiff with everyone is he?"  
 Armin gave him his teaching smile. "Levi has a different presence when he's out on the ship. He has a really good sense for how to handle her. So most people respect him and call him captain anyways."  
   
 Eren huffed. "He's still a puffer.”  
 Armin clutched the side of Eren’s tank as he doubled over. Eren peered over worried until he heard the laughter shaking his frame. He sank back into his tank.  
 “It wasn’t that funny,” he sulked.  
 Armin wiped the tears from his eyes as he managed to sit upright. “I just… I never realised your insults would be so different.”  
 “Well, what would you call him?” Eren asked.  
 Armin stared at him, eyes wide. “I can’t tell you that.”  
 “Why not?”  
 “I’ll get in trouble!”  
 “Not if he doesn’t hear you.”  
 “No. I’ll make a list for you later and you can practice your reading skills then.”  
 Eren pouted and sunk so only his eyes were above the water.  
   
 “I’m not going to read to you all the time. It’ll be good for you to actually practice.”  
 “But your voice is so nice!”  
 Armin turned bright red and Eren smiled at him, letting his hand trail down Armin’s cheek.  
 “You don’t mean it,” Armin mumbled.  
 “I do. At least you sound better than this siren that just warbles and all sea life vanishes from sight.”  
 “How far can you see?”  
 Eren shrugged. “I never had to measure before. But I can see farther in the sea than up here.”  
 Armin stared at him for a few moments, lost in thought. It happened fairly frequently lately, so that he found himself splashing him to snap him out of it. Thankfully, it wasn’t necessary this time.  
 “Can you see what’s written on the door from here?”  
 Eren squinted, trying to make out the different shapes. “A… human? And a ship?”  
 “Now go look underwater.”  
 Eren frowned. Things on land looked very different when seen through water. Even if he looked, he might not be able to tell because it would be so warped. Nevertheless, he ducked into the water and looked at the door.  
   
 It was far clearer now. A man standing by his ship, facing away from… something. He broke the surface, staring at Armin.  
 “Well?”  
 “A man with a ship facing away from something, but I couldn’t tell what.”  
 Armin had that little knowing smile on his face when he knew something Eren didn’t. A piece of the merfolk puzzle he liked to say. Eren tried to be patient and just wait for Armin to tell him.  
 “You have… lenses, like what Hanji has. Only yours protects your eyes from water and helps bring things further away into focus. You must be able to see quite a distance in the sea… I wonder if there are multiple facets or not…”  
 Eren stopped listening at that point, just watching Armin ramble on about different possibilities. Surely the pod wouldn’t mind him saving one human. This one human wanted to see the sea, experience it.  
   
 Hadn’t Mikasa told him that some time he would find someone worthy enough and to wait until then? Armin deserved more protection, and maybe Eren would be able to teach him how to survive at least, and maybe… just maybe he could trust him with the pod… They would want to know what happened to him at least.  
   
 Eren made up his mind, and pulled Armin’s chin closer to him. Armin fell completely silent, his eyes wide as their lips touched, with Eren nudging Armin’s lips just slightly apart before breathing out.  
   
 “ _What the fuck are you doing Arlert?_ ” Levi’s voice boomed across the entire ship and silence scattered across the water.  
 Armin scrambled far away from Eren, looking fearfully at the captain.  
 “There were only _two_ rules you had to follow.”  
 Eren looked between the two. Rules?  
 “Captain! It wasn’t me!”  
 “I should have you keelhauled,” Levi hissed, hauling Armin up by his shirt.  
 “ _No!_ ”  
 Armin and Levi turned to look at Eren. Armin looked so scared and Levi looked like he was about to throw something off the ship, if not rip it to pieces.  
 “Please don’t hurt him,” Eren pleaded. Armin was the only thing that made all this bearable. The only sunshine in his dreary days.  
 Levi let go of Armin and stalked over to Eren and grabbed his chin, forcing Eren to meet his eyes.  
   
 “What, exactly can you give me to make me decide otherwise?” Levi sounded almost exactly like Mikasa when she was angry. So much that Eren shuddered under his touch and tried to look away.  
 “I… I’ll cooperate,” he whispered. “I’ll answer all your questions and follow your orders.”  
 “To the letter?” Levi purred. He thought he could see Armin’s blond hair swaying in the corner of his eye, but Levi took up too much of his vision.  
 He felt his heart sink as he answered. “Yes.”  
   
 Levi finally let go, stalking back to Armin. He flinched as Levi brushed him off.  
 “You’re dismissed Arlert, the fish and I have business to talk about.”  
 Eren had hoped Armin would try and stay but he fled as soon as Levi said he was dismissed.  
   
 Levi was a shark as he moved to the door, locking it shut before turning to face Eren.  
 “He’s been under two rules since he’s been meeting you.”  
 Eren followed Levi with his eyes as he stalked around the tank.  
 “One, he was not to touch you. Two, he was not to help you escape. Now, tell me why should he be spared of punishment?”  
 “I touched him,” Eren replied fervently.  
 “ _Captain_.”  
 Eren looked at him with confusion.  
 “You’ll address me as captain.”  
 Eren nodded, flinching as Levi raised an eyebrow.  
 “Understood, _captain_ ,” he bit out. Levi hummed happily and Eren wanted nothing more than to sulk at the bottom of his tank.  
   
 “So, why were you touching him?”  
 Eren hesitated a moment, wondering how to best explain something even he didn’t quite understand.  
 “Do you even understand what you did?”  
 Eren glanced up, was touching lips together something different to humans?  
 “Not really captain.”  
 “You _kissed_ Arlert. I assume he’s given you some of his bullshit romance novels so you understand that at least.”  
 “I haven’t been able to read that much _captain_.”  
 “If that’s the case, what reason did you have to touch him like that?” Levi demanded. He faced Eren now, his arms fencing him in.  
   
 “To protect him.” That much was true, and it seemed to throw Levi for a loop. Eren thought he saw the steel melt for a moment, but it was just as strong as before.  
 “Protect him from what?”  
 That was a question Eren didn’t really know the answer to. He backed away from Levi’s intense stare as he tried to form words.  
 “The worst that can happen at sea,” he whispered, ducking his head so he was just above the water and didn’t have to look at Levi anymore.  
   
 His chin was drawn back up and his skin crawled as Levi caressed his cheek.  
 “We might get along after all.”  
 Nothing scared Eren more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love all the sea insults. I briefly debating posting this on Valentines Day because of the kiss and all but decided against it X3. Next chapter will ACTUALLY be on a Thursday hopefully. (26 not 19)


	9. Rules

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isolation is a powerful weapon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was thinking I might post a snippet on tumblr from the next chapter when I finish going through the remmy notes. I don’t know if people would be interested in that on a weekly basis at all or not though. XD

Silence had become a regular thing for Eren, except it was a different silence. It didn’t have the lightness it used to when he was ‘permitted’ to tease Levi. It had grown heavy, weighing down as he watched Levi working on whatever papers.  
   
 It was at least five Levi-sleeps since he had seen Armin. Levi seemed to always sleep at the same time in the day, judging by the amount of light from the window. Eren barely rested even when Levi left him alone, and the captain was almost a constant presence. Even Hanji was avoiding him now, so he was stuck with the silent puffer fish that didn’t even threaten him like normal.  
   
 Perhaps he had been wrong, and Levi was a shark instead, biding his time and weakening him instead of just stabbing him and getting it over with. He stared out the window wondering how they made such things to protect them from the winds. He sighed mournfully as he watched the rain.  
 “What did I say?” Levi’s voice called out in warning. Eren blinked before he slunk back under the water.  
   
 That was the other thing; right after Levi had kicked Armin out he had given Eren set rules to follow. If he followed them, his visits with Armin would begin again. A reward for ‘good behaviour’. Rule one had been to keep his mouth shut and make as little sound as possible while Levi was working.  
   
 He could live with the rules for now, knowing that it was the price to keep Armin safe. He jolted as a hand yanked him out of the water. Thankfully, not by the hair this time. Eren scowled at Levi as his arm was dropped quickly.  
   
 “Don’t ignore me.”  
 “Sorry _captain_ ,” Eren sulked, looking up into Levi’s eyes. He winced as his hair was pulled back, turning his head on a more severe angle. His hands clenched around the edge of the tank.  
 “Are you being impertinent _Fish?_ ”  
 Eren’s jaw clenched. He didn’t even know what that meant, but it still irritated him that Levi would call him a _fish_ of all things. “Are you so bitchy to everyone or just me?”  
   
 Levi shoved him back into the water, drawing a loud yelp from Eren.  
   
 “I wonder, how long would it take you to drown,” Levi mused. Eren glared up at him and crossed his arms. Levi would probably get bored before he ran out of air.  
   
 Their ‘fight’ was interrupted by a knock on the door. Whoever it was didn’t wait for answer, almost removing the hinges from the door.  
 “ _Levi!_ What are you doing! Let go of him!”  
 “What are you doing here?” Levi asked irritably. He did remove his hand from Eren’s head though. Eren twisted around so he could see who was putting the door back in its place.  
   
 Hanji was holding a bowl against her hip. The three angel fish sloshed in the water as she shoved the door back into its place. Eren lifted his head out of the water, his heart leaping as the fish gathered towards him, noses butting against the ‘glass’.  
 “They’re still alive?” he asked excitedly. Hanji gave a small laugh.  
 “No one said you could talk, Fish,” Levi growled.  
 “Oh come on Levi, it’s been long enough since I’ve talked to him. How long do you intend to punish _me?_ ”  
 Eren had thought that Levi was frightening sometimes, but Hanji seemed to just fill the room that demand.  
 Levi clicked his tongue and sat on a chest. “I’m not leaving.”  
 “Didn’t think you would!” Hanji said cheerfully. “But yes Eren! They’re alive. Armin managed to convince me that you would be able to say a lot more about their anatomy than what I would figure out by dissecting them!”  
 “Dissect?” Eren tilted his head slightly.  
 “She kills them and prods inside to figure out how their bodies function.”  
 Eren’s eyes went wide and he half reached out towards them before letting them drop back into the tank.  
 “Oh! Here, I don’t mind as long as you can get them back into the bowl so I can observe later!” Hanji upended the bowl into the tank and Eren felt a smile drift onto his face naturally as the three swarmed around him, prodding him with their mouths.  
   
 “You can talk to them if you want,” Hanji prodded. Eren shook his head, his smile growing more wistful. Krista had taken great joy in translating for the schools that gathered around her. Ymir put up with it, but Eren liked to listen to what they thought.  
 “I can’t.”  
 “Can’t, or won’t?” Levi demanded.  
 Eren looked up, meeting his eyes. “Can’t. But… they’re friends of a sort.”  
 “Can you clarify that?” Hanji asked, leaning on the edge of his tank. Eren frowned, not sure what she meant.  
 “You better not refuse.” Levi’s voice dropped and Eren shot him an irritated glance.  
 “They’re… acquaintances of a friend,” he answered hesitantly.  
 “Oh come Eren, there’s more of a story to it than that!” Hanji prodded.  
 “I don’t…” Eren struggled to find words.  
 Levi clicked his tongue. “Stop stalling.”  
 “Levi, get out,” Hanji ordered. “Or shut up. Actually go out and scream at the sea for a second and come back. That should get you in a better mood.”  
   
 Eren stared at Hanji. He couldn’t believe she was being so blunt, without Levi saying a word. Levi scowled and stomped out the door. Hanji gave Eren a small smile.  
 “Now, how about you let it out too?”  
 “Sorry?”  
 “Come on, he probably pulled some shit like you can only call him captain and you have so many things you want to call him for everything he’s doing now. Let it out while you can. You’ll feel better.”  
   
 Eren didn’t believe his ears, staring at her soft smile that stayed in place no matter what. He couldn’t trust that she would keep it a secret.  
 “Oh come on, doesn’t he have such a flat face? I like to call him a misinterpreted midget when he gets annoying.”  
 Eren let out a snort at that.  
 “Now your turn,” Hanji prompted.  
 Eren bit his lip. “He… He’s such a _barnacle_. Worse than a puffer! At least that’s a defensive mechanism rather than just trying to stake out territory and pissing everyone off all the time!”  
   
 Hanji laughed so hard she was clawing at the floor. Eren stared at her, wondering if her reaction was something normal.  
 “Happy you think of me that way,” Levi hissed.  
 “Oh Levi! I wanted to see how insults would change since Eren lives in the ocean!”  
 Levi glowered at her as Eren sunk so only his eyes were above the water. Hanji was covering for him yelling insults. He supposed he could have been quieter. The angel fish swum around his hair and letting out bubbles.  
 “ _Barnacles_ ,” Hanji cackled. “Just as annoying to us as to you! _Barnacles_.”  
 “Shut the fuck up you overeager idiot,” Levi hissed.  
 “Are you so bitter to everyone?” Eren blurted out.  
 Levi glared at Eren.  
 “Captain,” Eren added hastily.  
   
 “He is,” Hanji moaned. “I think that they voted me in just so someone could understand Levi. I mean, women aren’t even usually _allowed_ on ships.”  
 “They aren’t?” Eren glanced between the two of them.  
 “Bad luck,” Levi summarised. “A load of bullshit. We’d have worse luck without the women we have on board.”  
 “They can all protect themselves quite well too. Petra and I make sure of that.”  
 “Why?” Eren tilted his head to a side.  
 “Some men like to take advantage if they can.” Levi stretched out, a dangerous glint to his eyes. “If we find out about it the perpetrator is keel hauled.”  
 Eren blinked in confusion and Hanji burst out into endless cackles. He looked between the two of them, but Levi seemed content to wait for Hanji to stop laughing.  
 “Unfortunately,” Levi finally interrupted Hanji’s fits. “It’s not quite as bad a punishment on the _Relentless_ as other ships.”  
 “You throw someone off the prow, that’s the front, of the ship and let them drag along the keel.” Hanji took a deep breath and glanced at Levi. “Can I borrow your model? I won’t put it in the water.”  
 Levi gave a grunt and stood up. Eren barely glanced his way as he heard shuffling, instead keeping his gaze on Hanji.  
   
 “It’s easiest if you can see it,” Hanji explained, holding out a hand as Levi plopped a miniature ship onto it.  
 “Don’t touch it,” Levi ordered, looking straight at Eren. He nodded fervently, but edged closer to Hanji as she began to point and list off the different areas of the ship.  
 “Is this this ship?” Eren asked, craning his head to look at it from other angles without touching it.  
 Levi laughed. “No, it’s a stock model of typical slavers.”  
 “Slavers?”  
 A heavy silence fell and Eren shrank into the water.  
 “Don’t ask about them,” Levi finally ordered heavily. Eren glanced at Hanji, noticing that she had a bitter smile as well.  
 “So keel hauling,” Eren prompted, wanting to cut the tension in the room.  
   
 “Right! So we throw a rope on them and toss them off here,” Hanji pointed at the point and dragged it along the bottom of the ship. “And then they go like this. Usually it results in them getting all scraped up by anything attached to the ship. Levi’s very persistent in keeping the _Relentless_ as clean as possible.”  
 “She’ll slow down otherwise,” Levi grunted. “She was built for speed, useless if you let shit build up on the outside. But stop trying to change the subject.”  
 Eren cringed and he could tell Hanji was tracing the conversation back.  
   
 “Yes! Fish! Can you clarify how your friend is able to communicate with them?”  
 “If you don’t.” Eren cringed at Levi’s warning tone. “Arlert will be punished instead of you.”  
 “Levi—”  
 “Shut up, we can’t damage goods, but it needs some incentive to actually answer. If it was attached enough to kiss him, surely if it was empathic in anyway it would answer.”  
 “If I do will you stop calling me ‘it’ and ‘fish’?” Eren challenged.  
 Levi smirked. “We’ll see.”  
   
 Eren flicked his tail in and out of the water, thinking of how he should word it. It was something that his pod just _understood_. Levi’s scowl got deeper and deeper with each moment.  
 “I’m not entirely sure, none of us are.”  
 Levi clicked his tongue. “Five lashes for Arlert.”  
 Eren jolted and he could see Hanji clenching the tank. He bit his lip, trying to think of anything that might help. Krista was the one they all wanted safe. She had the most protection. After he had been taken it was unlikely she would be in a group of less than four when she had to leave the rocks.  
 “Something about her calls fish, they like to spend time with her and she collects them by schools. When they’re old, some of the others eat them or wait until they die. She’s protective of them, no one touches the schools without her permission.”  
 Hanji frowned. “How could she do that?”  
 “She doesn’t so much… someone else reinforces it.”  
 “Who?” Levi demanded.  
 Eren bit his lip and stared down into the water.  
 “Up at ten lashes now.”  
   
 Eren just wanted to sink into the water. Levi wasn’t even giving him time to think over his answers, to make sure that they were right but safe for his pod. He swallowed hard, a hand brushing the fins of one of the angelfish.  
 “A _cecaelia_.”  
 “What?” Hanji asked.  
 Eren fumbled trying to answer before Armin would be further punished. “They… have some power…”  
 “Not specific enough,” Levi said.  
 “I… I don’t know the words!” Eren pleaded, staring into Levi’s eyes. “They’re as rare as I am!”  
   
 He shut his mouth, realising what he just said and sank into the water. He had screwed up. He had screwed up big time. They thought he had some worth, and he had just verified it for them. Levi dragged him back up by his hair.  
 “If you do that again, Arlert will have twenty.”  
 Eren burst out of the water glaring at Levi.  
 “What? So you can be eely! How do I even know you aren’t already punishing him for something _I_ did?” He turned to look at Hanji. “You’ve locked me in one room with stale water and I haven’t had so much of a breath of the ocean! You want me alive but I’m _dying_ in here. I can’t swim, I can’t sing and I can’t even talk without you hurting the one person that seems to give a flap about me as a living being.”  
   
 Eren’s mouth shut at Levi’s look. He hadn’t seen that before, and had no idea what it meant. He felt terror settling in his bones as Hanji left without a word or look at Levi.  
 “Locked you in is it?” Levi’s voice was quiet, but without its usual harshness. “We’ll see what we can do about that. I hardly like having a talking fish in my room all the time either.” Levi tilted his chin slightly and smiled, but it wasn’t familiar to Eren. There wasn’t the usual trace of anger or irritation.  
 “You can see Arlert out on deck.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know if you guys would like snippets or the next chapter title at the end of chapters (I'm a huge tease OTL). I'll see you guys next week.


	10. Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren finally goes out and sees Armin again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for all your lovely comments <3

 Eren sulked in his tank, just like the last few days. Levi and Hanji hadn’t grilled him more about his people since his outburst, but nothing else had changed. He resented that he hadn’t been brought outside like promised, and he hadn’t seen Armin. He flicked drops of water across the surface carefully. If he got a drop on the floor Levi would throw a fit.  
   
 The fish swirled around him and he ducked under so that he could properly face them. They seemed almost glued to his side lately, and after that outburst Hanji had left them with him. He wished he could talk to them, even though he knew they could understand him. They knew he had ratted out Krista to the pirates. His heart felt even heavier as he thought about it. If there was anyone he had to protect in the pod—it was her. Thankfully, they didn’t seem to realise her importance so he had only fucked himself up.  
   
 Knowing that, he wasn’t sure why the fish were so determined to cheer him up, even putting on a little show. It managed to coax the smallest smile out of him that had them dancing in delight. He almost wished Levi was trying to annoy him again. Anything to distract him from his thoughts.  
   
 Armin was scared of him, Levi was outright ignoring him, and Hanji… he had last seen her looking at him like he was the most unfortunate soul on the ship. He stared at his tail absentmindedly. It seemed like some of the colour was leeching, it was a pale yellow now instead of the usual amber gold. Then again, he mostly compared against the colour of the sea so maybe everything just looked dim now.  
   
 He didn’t even look up as the door opened. There was no point anyways. He ignored Levi as he drew closer. He would probably just stare at him, open his mouth and then leave again. Eren sank down to the water level as Levi did just that. He looked listlessly out of the window and the rain pelting it.  
   
 Normally the pod would stay close to the rocks in a storm like this; far from the open ocean that might rip them all apart. Eren occasionally dared to challenge himself and swim out, but always with Mikasa or Ymir tracking him with magic. It was simple enough for one or two to leave, but the two _cecaelia_ had nowhere near enough power for the entire pod.  
   
 “We can’t bring you out yet.”  
 Eren blinked, glancing at Levi. Had he spoken?  
 “It’s too cold out for you. It’s too risky.”  
 Eren frowned before looking back out the window to listen to the cascade. Levi sighed and Eren found his vision filled with the short man.  
 “We had to find a way to get you outside without injuring any of my crew.”  
 Eren leaned back as Levi reached out towards his head. The arm dropped, but Eren continued to eye it warily.  
 “Arlert will be on deck when you go out. You can see for yourself how he’s doing.”  
   
 Eren watched Levi leave, doubting that he was telling the truth. It was easy for him to make promises, but it would be just as easy for him to break them. He turned back to watch the rain.  
   
 “Your answer?”  
 Eren looked back at him startled. Had he missed a question?  
   
 Levi sighed, leaning on his desk. “It was implied.” He rubbed his temples. “You still want to go out?”  
 Eren stared at him, still not really believing him.  
 “Speak the fuck up or I’ll start thinking you’re regressing into a fish,” Levi ordered.  
 Eren flinched, but noticed Levi’s odd wording. “I want to see the sea again.”  
 Another one of those strange smiles crossed Levi’s face. “Once the storm stops. Some modifications are going to be made to the tank.” Levi gave him a hard look.  
 Eren could see how that stare might get some of his crew to jump at his call.  
 “Don’t make me regret it.”  
 Eren’s eyebrows drew together as he tried to puzzle out what Levi meant. How could he possibly make Levi regret something?  
 “You’ll understand later,” Levi dismissed. Eren tilted his head. He hadn’t said anything had he? There was no way for Levi to actually understand what he was thinking just like that.  
 Eren continued to stare at Levi, not even realising he was drifting off slowly.  
   
 He woke to the sunlight shining, a smile in his heart that was squished as he remembered where he was. That and it was oddly noisy. He cracked an eye open, almost falling out of the tank in a scramble to put distance between him and whoever’s face that was.  
 “I told you you’d scare him,” Levi grumbled.  
 Hanji only cackled and moved to the side of the tank. Eren couldn’t really see what she was doing and dove so he was closer to the bottom. It seemed she was putting something round on it, and there were larger round things beside her.  
 “Help me out would you?” she complained. Eren blinked once, but stayed down as she waved a hand and looked over to where Levi was.  
   
 He could almost feel Levi’s huff vibrating the water as he came over. Eren pressed the edges of the glass in a small panic as it tilted to one side.  
 “It’s okay Eren! Levi won’t let you fall, or let the tank break.” Hanji cackled as she put on one of the larger round things. It lifted the tank oddly so that more water gathered in the opposite corner.  
 “The other side now?”  
 “Just give me the stupid thing. You’re going to check it anyways.”  
 Hanji laughed and handed two of the round things to him. Levi levelled the tank and placed the round thing on. The water was level now, but Eren felt like it might tip over any moment. It seemed that Levi and Hanji weren’t done though. Once they finished it was stable again, but Eren felt like he was moving. He poked up over the ledge.  
 “What did you do?” He tried to see what had changed, but the angle made it difficult.  
   
 “Added wheels! It was difficult enough to set up the tank and fill it with water the first time, and you probably wouldn’t like to be carri—”  
 “Stop rambling.”  
 Hanji’s lips shut and she gave an awkward smile.  
 “Wheels, we added wheels,” she answered. “They’ll help with movement, but we’ll probably have to do something so you don’t just roll around everywhere.”  
   
 Eren stared at her, then at the door. That might be what Levi meant by not making much trouble. He would be able to move, at least somewhat. He glanced up at Levi, wondering if this actually meant that he was going to keep his promise.  
 “Okay! I’ll give you two some time now and chat with the crew for a bit! Don’t want any distractions now!”  
   
 Silence built between the two as Hanji left. Neither really wanted to break it. It took Hanji barging back in with a scowl scolding them and leaving again before Levi said anything.  
 “You might hate me, but the crew has their work to do and if you distract them they can die. That’s the type of mistakes that can be made on a ship.”  
 Eren followed Levi’s stiff movements. He had never seemed quite so… normal.  
 “You’re a distraction as is. You’re in this room as much to protect you as so we can keep an eye on you. Don’t do anything excessive. Then we can discuss doing this more regularly.”  
 He meant that Levi would trade for it. Eren sulked slightly knowing that Levi wouldn’t just let him go out without offering something in return.  
 “Besides, you look like actual shit right now anyways. Less fish and more human than anything.”  
 “I’m out of my depth for sure ,” Eren murmured. He rested his head on the ledge. “So are we going or not?”  
 Levi huffed and gave the tank a light push to the door, that Hanji had so kindly left open.  
   
 The reflection off the water blinded him. He shut his eyes reflexively and drew in a breath. He gasped, not realising just how different the air tasted now. He had missed it so much. The salt wasn’t damp or moldy. It was alive and fluid. He gulped in another breath, and opened his eyes slowly.  
   
 The sun had never seemed so captivating, or the warmth it spread along his skin feeling so warm. His tank was in the sunlight in Levi’s quarters, but it was so nice to come out and feel the warmth drying his skin instead of the musty air. The brightness cascaded across the water, throwing sparkles into his vision, and Armin was there, gathering all of its brightness.  
   
 He seemed fine, startled, relieved even. Levi hadn’t hurt him, he was moving with more ease than that time he had visited after his punishment.  
   
 The joy welled up in him, overpouring so that he was singing before he realised it. He could feel the angel fish still, listening. Eren didn’t understand the words, only the feeling of desperation, despair and the final hope that maybe, just maybe things wouldn’t be so horrible in the end. He opened his eyes and faltered when he saw everyone staring at him. He had only noticed Armin before, not the dozens of others that were around the ship, all staring at him. He stiffened, realising he had done the one thing that Levi had asked him not to do. He had drawn attention.  
   
 He didn’t even want to look at Levi, afraid of what the man would say.  
 “Oh Eren.” Tears were pouring down Petra’s face. It seemed to spur action on the ship, his tank suddenly being almost thrown into Levi’s desk. Eren yelped as his head smacked the glass and he heard the door slam. He was stuck in here now. Levi would never let him out. He wouldn’t be able to see Armin again.  
   
 Levi yanked his hair back, forcing Eren’s eyes to meet his. Eren felt terror in his bones from his gaze. Levi was angry, murderous almost. But… he was reminded of Mikasa, who would have the exact same expression when she was angry because they had almost gotten hurt. Why would Levi care that much about him though?  
 Eren flinched as Levi’s other hand drifted down to Eren’s throat.  
 “Your voice is mine.”  
 Eren’s lips tightened at Levi’s stiff order. He didn’t like singing anyways, but there was no way that Levi would stop him from talking to people. Hell, he had been trying to get him to talk to people all this time.  
 “If you promise that, Arlert can visit you at his discretion.”  
   
 “No.”  
 “If you disagree he’ll be punished.”  
 “I’m not _performing_ for you!” Eren screamed.  
 Levi’s grip around his throat tightened, before Levi was thrown across the room. He wiped the blood off his cheek before glowering behind Eren. He was too frightened to want to look behind him. Every instinct told him that Levi was the larger threat, that he wanted more from Eren and wouldn’t ever stop taking.  
   
 “You’re both stupid,” Petra declared. “Captain, I’m taking Eren back out so he can have some fresh air and so your room can air out. Hanji has threatened to demote anyone that gets closer than two yards.”  
 Levi grunted, looking displeased.  
 “She also suggested you may want to mutilate them if they disobeyed.”  
 Eren felt like prey for the first time. The glint in Levi’s eyes had him ducking under water, wanting to swim as far and fast as possible as long as it got him away from this man.  
   
 “I suppose so. If he becomes too distracting, feel free to muzzle him.”  
 “I think he feels horrible enough already Captain. There’s hardly any more reason to traumatise him.”  
   
 Petra and Eren both let out sighs of relief as he was brought back out to the deck, where everyone was resolutely ignoring him. Armin was pouring over charts, with Hanji at the wheel. He hadn’t seen Armin quite so focused and he seemed to be enjoying himself.  
 “Eren, you’ll be fine on your own?” Petra asked anxiously. “I mean—”  
 “I don’t like to sing much,” Eren admitted quietly. “It was… instinctive.”  
 Petra observed him for a moment. “What prompted it?”  
 Eren looked out at the sea, a longing smile crossing his face. “I felt like I was free again.”  
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -nervous laughter-


	11. Courting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi is acting strangely as they pull up to land once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all of your comments and I really enjoy them. That's probably an understatement but it's the closest word I have right now. It makes me that much more excited to see how you all react as the story unfolds and I hope that it continues to hold your interest.

 The silence in the room seemed to change since Eren started visiting the deck. The fish seemed happier, and Hanji was glad that they seemed more likely to thrive with him than in her bowl so he had some of the nostalgic chatter around him again. He hadn’t realised how much he had talked with his pod until he had to keep his mouth shut.  
   
 Unfortunately, the ship had stopped again, but this time Eren could tell because he saw the buildings out of the window. He had only half listened to the lecture about why he shouldn’t go out on deck. He already knew it in his bones. He was a distraction and would get them in trouble if he was seen.  
   
 Still, he hated being stuck with no one to talk to. Armin and Hanji had been drawn to the wonders of a new city. Even those on deck seemed either excited or nervous about it. The black cloth with the weird white marking on the top had been removed too, but Eren didn’t really understand why that was important.  
   
 There were more people outside than he remembered seeing on the deck. He envied their smiles. He could see their wild joy taking over and heard them scamper over the boat, some of them even falling into the water in their haste.  
   
 “Those below don’t have many opportunities to come up,” Petra commented.  
 Eren sighed and sunk a little in the tank.  
 “It’ll only be for a few days,” Petra consoled. She had great patience for him when he was out on deck, sometimes explaining what all the different ropes did and how the sails would catch the wind to take them the correct way. He had tried to understand how Armin worked, but the maps and directions confused him. There were far too many lines even when Armin tried to explain them to him. Something about the red circles and depth. Or was that the black squiggles?  
   
 “They’ll be back soon enough, Armin was oddly happy that he could go. Ah, he had to be escorted by Hanji though. I wonder if they’re looking to get something for you.”  
 A small smile crossed Eren’s face. Armin was still overly cautious with him, but at least they were talking again. He didn’t have quite the same ease about him though, like he was constantly acting like Eren would eat him.  
   
 “Petra!” Armin’s voice called. Eren perked up, wondering if he would be coming in to visit. He and Hanji appeared in front of the door, both holding heavy buckets in their hands.  
 “I thought you were going to the market,” Petra scolded.  
 “Well, that was the plan but there was some unusual sea life! Even the locals said it was odd for so many of them to be around at this time of the year, so!” Hanji upended a bucket into Eren’s tank, causing the water to lap gently at the very top of the tank now.  
 “Hanji! We’ll get in trouble if the Captain’s floor gets wet.”  
 “Eh, he’ll be happy enough to clean it.”  
   
 It was then that Eren noticed what she had dumped into the tank. Eggs. The angel fish were already inspecting them with Eren when Hanji dumped in another bucket. This one full of plants.  
 He stared at her as the water began to pour over, soaking into the floorboards. She had a frightening smile on.  
 “Hanji, what are you—”  
 She didn’t wait before grabbing one of Armin’s buckets and upended _that_ in too.  
 “Hmm, maybe we should take some of the old water out with the buckets too,” Hanji mused.  
 “ _Really?_ ” Eren scowled. There was only one bucket left, and he was fairly certain she had managed to get water on every inch of Levi’s floor. There were now several small fish in the tank too. They were nosing around Eren’s tail and sniffing at the eggs until the angel fish swarmed them, keeping them away.  
 “Last one!” Hanji called. Eren stared as a long thing slithered out into the tank. He reflexively backed away as it brushed against him.  
   
 “Hanji, that’s a shark,” he whispered.  
 “I know! They said it was good luck. The little guy just came bumping up against Armin and went into the bucket on his own!”  
 Eren stared at her wide-eyed, shivers trailing down his sides.  
 “Hanji! That’s dangerous! It’ll eat the other fish too!”  
 Hanji pushed her glasses up and Eren saw that Armin looked extremely uncomfortable.  
 “I thought it might be better to replicate some of Eren’s home! This way there’s a little system going on now!”  
 Eren curled in more as the shark explored the territory, its mouth opening and closing. It must not be too hungry, since the fish weren’t scattering at its proximity.  
 “I mean, the angel fish were so much happier with Eren around! So I thought they’d be good with a few more friends! Eren can stop it from eating them anyways!”  
   
 Eren didn’t know how he started laughing, but once it started he couldn’t stop. He had told her several times that he couldn’t talk to fish, couldn’t understand them. He only had vague sensations, and that was with the fish trying to be understood.  
   
 “See! He feels better already!”  
 “You’re so… ridiculous,” Eren managed to get out. He kept edging away from the shark. Those little ones were nasty little bastards if you got in their way.  
 “What the fuck are you doing?”  
 Eren didn’t think he’d ever been so happy to hear Levi’s voice. He was a silent angry, Eren could practically feel it, but for once it wasn’t at him.  
 “You did say you needed a cleaning project,” Hanji offered with a wide smile.  
 Levi’s eyes narrowed. “Get the fuck out.”  
 The three of them scampered, leaving the buckets behind. Levi sighed and Eren just managed to catch his sleeve before he went to his desk.  
   
 Levi glowered at him and he quailed.  
 “C-Can you take it out?” Eren cringed.  
 Levi’s eyes swept the tank in confusion.  
 “She… put a shark in. A uh…” Eren cringed.  
 “Spit it out.”  
 “It likes snacking on us. Large chunks at a time.”  
 He didn’t have enough time to warn Levi as his hands shot in, yanking it out.  
 “Hey! Your—”  
 He cringed as Levi’s hand began bleeding from the shark’s spines while he tossed it into the bucket. He was glad Levi wasn’t going to let it drown at least.  
   
 “Come here,” Eren ordered, holding his hand out, staring determinedly at Levi’s hand. “You helped. For once. Let me help.”  
 “What would you know about healing?” Levi scoffed.  
 Eren scowled and gestured more. “Just stop being such a _prick_ and come over here.”  
 He kept his hand out until Levi’s plopped in it. He smoothed it out; it had always been instinctive when he was helping the pod. He only hoped that despite how shitty Levi was that the instinct would kick in.  
   
 He hummed, ignoring Levi’s hiss as he placed his hand in the water. He slowed rubbed it until the scratches were clear. He smiled slightly as one of the new fish prodded at Levi’s hand.  
 “Get it on with,” Levi’s scowl deepened.  
 Eren glanced up at him, seeing confusion and shock in the captain’s eyes before they hardened.  
   
 He glanced down and let go of Levi’s hand. The man clicked his tongue and Eren enjoyed the startled look as Levi glanced at his hand and back at Eren. A smirk covered his face.  
 “Well I guess having you around has its perks.”  
 “Don’t get used to it. Just paying back the favour.”  
 “Noooo! Levi what did you do?” Hanji whined. “I wanted to see them all getting together!”  
 “Then don’t toss in things that like mermaid flesh,” Levi rebutted.  
 “ _What?_ Eren, why didn’t you tell me?” Hanji cried. Armin poked his head in as well and Eren sunk into his tank to hide from more of her crazy antics.  
 “Did you give him _time_ to?” Levi demanded.  
 Hanji laughed sheepishly and walked into to grab the bucket. “Well, I just hope you didn’t grab him barehanded.”  
 Levi gave Eren a sideways look. “Would you think that I’d be so absentminded?”  
 “Nah, just too eager to act.”  
   
 Eren blew bubbles in amusement, causing Hanji to cackle and even Armin to snicker a little.  
 “Yes, now get the fuck out unless you’re going to clean your shit up.”  
 Hanji grabbed the buckets and fled, even Armin ducked his head back out.  
 “You couldn’t keep your mouth shut could you?” Levi grumbled.  
 “I did keep my mouth shut,” Eren defended looking pointedly out the window. He jumped slightly as something was set on his head.  
 “What did you do?” He touched the top of his head carefully and feeling something cold.  
   
 Levi looked like he had been struck by a siren.  
 “It suits you,” he murmured. “It’s just something like an apology.”  
 Eren frowned. Levi never had any reason to apologise to him before.  
 “What do you mean?”  
   
 Levi scowled at him, his eyes holding an odd heat to them now. “Don’t act like you don’t know Eren.”  
   
 Eren almost shot out of the tank. Levi clicked his tongue and looked out the window.  
 “Don’t get used to it. Otherwise everyone else will get ideas. You’re just as valuable as them.”  
 “Really now?” Eren purred. So he treated everyone just as shittily. “Don’t you think that’s counterproductive?”  
 “What you want better treatment?” Levi scoffed.  
 Eren snorted. For being so ‘brilliant’ according to Petra, he was quite dense.  
 “Treating everyone like crap,” he clarified. “Don’t you think that’s counterproductive?”  
   
 Levi’s scowl snapped back in place and Eren sighed, feeling whatever it was jangling.  
 “What is this anyways?” Eren grumbled, going to grab it until something stopped him. He glanced up at Levi’s hand.  
 “Keep it on. It… suits you.”  
 Eren snorted, since when did Levi care about such a thing? In fact Levi seemed to be paying an odd amount of attention to him.  
 “You’re looking livelier. Maybe that four eyes—”  
 “Hanji,” Eren interrupted. “If you can call me by name you can call her by name. After all, aren’t you one of the few people that don’t have to care about station?”  
 Levi barked out a laugh. “I get results, that’s what mattered to them when we were voted in.”  
 “What’s a vote?”  
   
 Silence fell and Eren supposed that was the end of their conversation for the day now. When Levi spoke up he jumped slightly in surprise.  
 “Everyone decides who the leader is.”  
 “Oh, isn’t there an easy way to tell who’s best suited.”  
 “What, you have a way for that?”  
 Eren bit his lip and looked away, hoping Levi wouldn’t push. He was startled when Levi just sighed and shuffled around.  
 “You don’t have to say. No, there isn’t a good way to tell those that are best fit for a position.”  
 Eren thought he heard a note of resentment in his voice and found his gaze drawn back. It was almost startling how nice Levi was being.  
   
 Too strange. He drew back from Levi.  
 “What do you want?” he demanded. Levi looked startled at the demand, but he wasn’t going to let him use any of his tricks.  
 “Nothing,” Levi sounded frustrated too. Good, that meant his plan wasn’t working. “Eren, just—”  
 “I want to talk to Armin again.”  
 Levi’s eyes narrowed. “No. Let me—”  
 “I won’t say anything until I get to see Armin!”  
 “For fucks—”  
 Eren dove underwater and pretended to be interested in the new fish. They were definitely an odd collection. He could recognise a few as the ones that were drawn by Krista, but not the others. He made sure not to look anywhere in Levi’s direction. If he was that desperate he would pull him up anyways.  
   
 Although he did think that he was hearing an oddly long recital of strange words. He didn’t have any particular reason to bother listening if Levi was just rambling on without needing to actually talk to him.  
 “ _Would you just come out and fucking talk?_ ”  
 Eren blinked, turning to look at Levi. Maybe that was different. Usually Levi would just yank him out. But Ymir had told him the tricks humans could pull as well. She enjoyed pulling them herself all too much as well.  
   
 Then again, he didn’t really like getting his hair pulled so he poked his head out the water slowly. Levi was breathing heavily. Eren waited patiently for him to say something, but it seemed Levi had stalled for words. It was only when Eren made to sink again that Levi was able to force the words out.  
 “I want to know more about you.”  
 “No,” Eren hissed. “You all know too much already.”  
 “Not like that!” Levi’s foot tapped impatiently on the floor. “You’ve been telling us about your kind but not yourself as a person.”  
 “There isn’t much to tell.”  
 “Bullshit.”  
 “I don’t understand.”  
 Levi glowered at him. “Liar. I bet Armin knows more about you.”  
 “Well he doesn’t.” It was true; they had mostly talked about other things, neither really willing to open up about the life they left behind.  
 “Tell me.”  
 “No.” He felt he could actually push Levi in this manner. “It isn’t relevant for you or your _endeavours_.”  
   
 Levi kicked one of the remaining buckets, sloshing the water around.  
 “What are you going to do to me anyways?” Eren taunted. “You need your _merchandise_ pristine.”  
 He had gone too far. He could see it in Levi’s eyes.  
 “You won’t be seeing Hanji or Armin in the future,” Levi’s voice had dropped low. Eren didn’t have a moment to say anything as the captain stalked outside, slamming the door closed behind him.  
   
 Eren was left utterly alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I laugh too much at that shark, and bubbles.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed and that I'll see you all next week!


	12. Nerve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The crew is concerned about Levi and a new course is set

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the chapter where I was inspired by the fanart [here](http://hoboeri.tumblr.com/post/95786737159/you-can-buy-all-the-trinkets-and-beautiful-things) (hope I did that right). I hesitated to link it at the beginning since the pairing isn't quite what the original tags were but... well...
> 
> Anyways fun things begin to happen.

 Levi sighed, banging his head against door. “Don’t say it,” he warned. He could tell that Hanji was just beside him.  
 “Okay. What changed?”  
 “What do you mean? I’m just as antisocial and irritable as before.”  
 “Levi—”  
 “ _Not on deck_ ,” he hissed.  
 “Levi,” she repeated strongly. “You are an unsociable jackass but your instincts are top notch. Your praises breathe life into the crew. You’ve actually _talked_ to those below. You used to only go down to make sure conditions were right and order was maintained. The crew is _worried_ your instincts have dimmed and you’re compensating.”  
 “And they just _happen_ to tell you this?”  
   
 She frowned, hands on her hips. “They don’t need to. I know them well enough that a look can say everything.”  
 “Then what was with that shark?”  
 Hanji shrugged. “It came bumping up to Armin, it was his suggestion actually and I did think that Eren might have a natural way of dealing with predators.”  
 “Didn’t it occur to you to just _ask?_ ”  
 “Asking is different from seeing.”  
 “What if they’re just faster than the predators? How could he defend himself then Hanji?”  
 Hanji’s eyes widened. “Say that again.”  
 Levi stared at her.  
 “You said my name. You would just call me dipshit or idiot before.”  
 “So?”  
 “Not much changes out here.” She waved at the sea. “But you were starting to act strangely before we got to town. The one thing that changed…” Hanji leaned forward, putting her face level with Levi’s.  
 “Eren sang,” he replied numbly.  
 “We don’t know the full effects of a mermaid song. Can you understand my concern now?”  
   
 Levi rubbed the heels of his palms into his eyes. “Is anyone else affected?”  
 “Armin’s a little more respectful and less fearful than before. He’s still touchy about getting too close to Eren though. Everyone else seems just a little more… at ease. Not relaxed but…”  
 “Like everything else didn’t matter, the wounds they had…”  
 “Levi, is that what it was?” She looked concerned. “You…”  
 “For once it felt like someone said my past didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered is the person I am now,” Levi replied hoarsely, turning his back to her. He wouldn’t cry and he knew if he stared into her eyes he would.  
 “The past formed you in some way,” Hanji admitted. “But you chose what you did, and I for one am happy for it.”  
   
 He glanced at her, wondering if this was Hanji on one of her philosophical days for once.  
 “No one _else_ would let me keep a mermaid on board!”  
 Levi snorted, she would kill the tension that way. She smiled lightly at him and gave a short bow.  
 “Forgive the Quartermaster’s insolence if it please ye.”  
 “God Hanji stop.”  
 “If it please ye.”  
 “Hanji,” he warned. She burst into laughter and Levi felt rather than saw the crew relax a little. There had been some worry after all and Hanji’s laugh proved that things were just fine. “Don’t you _dare_ slack off,” he called.  
 “Oh! Captain!” Hanji called back.  
 He turned to look at her, halfway across the deck already.  
 “If you’re courting him, let some of the ladies help.”  
 It was immense control that stopped him from both strangling Hanji and from red blossoming on his cheeks.  
 “It’s alright Captain!” Petra called, amusement colouring her voice. “Auruo’s worse at it than you.”  
 Laughter broke out at Petra’s joke about the First Mate. Auruo learned well, a little too eager to copy him when Levi would rather he would find his own style instead. He didn’t want anyone else to have to be like him, or suffer as he did.  
   
 “I take it you still aren’t flattered then?” he drawled. He enjoyed watching the red blossom on Petra’s cheeks before she turned to call out orders. Auruo was just as flustered, but had no reason to turn away from him.  
 “Where are we heading?” Auruo finally spluttered. Work slowed for a moment to hear the answer.  
 “Home,” Levi answered heavily.  
 “Captain…” Petra turned to look at him, pain in her eyes.  
 “We have a deadline to keep, we can’t miss it,” he answered flatly. He refused to let his eyes go to Armin.  
 “But Cap—”  
 “It’s an order. We’ve dallied too long already to let some of them go.”  
 “Yes Captain,” Petra answered sadly. He gripped her shoulder lightly.  
 “We still have the trip there. Don’t get down or the sea will swallow you.”  
 Petra gave him a weak smile before turning back to the crew and barked out orders. Her usual passion wasn’t there though.  
   
 “Should you have told her?” Auruo asked.  
 “She would have worried otherwise. Petra likes to have a general idea of what terrain to expect. She and Armin talk a lot. She would have figured it out eventually.”  
 “It’s been a while since we’ve been back.”  
 Levi gripped his sword hilt tightly. “I hate the eyes on me there.”  
 “I see. Will you sup in your quarters again?”  
 The corner of Levi’s mouth twitched up. “Sometimes I think you know me far too well Auruo.”  
 “It is my job Captain.”  
 “Your job is to learn, not mimic,” he scolded.  
 “Yes Captain, I’ll try.”  
 Levi gave a short nod as he closed his door behind him.  
   
 Eren was still sulking underwater. He wondered how long Eren could actually stay down there and it surely couldn’t be all day. It probably meant that the brunet had figured out his schedule to a degree.  
 He was still wearing the amber circlet chain that Levi had given him. It only amplified his natural beauty, and he wasn’t sure how he hadn’t seen it before.  
   
 At some point he had wormed his way under his skin. Hanji had been right. He was getting soft even in his own head. He sighed as Eren blatantly ignored him to poke around with some of the baby fish that had been hatching. He wondered if mermaids even had their own young to take care of, but he wouldn’t be able to get an answer out of him while he was sulking. He only wanted to know more about him before they had to part. He wanted to protect Eren. He pressed the bridge of his nose. That song had hit him far too hard, made him remember far too many things.  
   
 He was an asshole. He tried to be one so that people would stay away from him. But, it was important for him to understand his crew. He knew more about Armin as a person than Eren overall. Even though he had to keep his distance from both of them. His hands clenched into fists. He should be able to do what he liked on his own ship and not have to worry about the fucking dog hovering over him. He took in a deep breath. He could have just thrown him overboard and ignored the deal, but something stopped him.  
   
 He barely heard the familiar splashing as Eren rose up above the water. He was still guarded, and Levi had to admit he wasn’t exactly acting well if he wanted to be in his good books.  
 Eren was still stubbornly silent.  
 “How are the fish doing?” Levi asked blandly. He didn’t really care, but it was probably one of the few things he could get Eren to talk about.  
 “Why do you care?”  
 Or maybe not.  
 “Because you do,” Levi sighed and sat down on a chest. He caressed the top of it. It had the few things he actually gave a shit about. Thankfully the chest was quite waterproof and hadn’t been damaged by Hanji’s antics.  
   
 “So what?”  
 Levi propped his chin up on his hand and observed Eren. He scowled slightly as he ran in circles about how to go about asking Eren. Before deciding that he was nowhere as much of a conversational surgeon as Armin or Hanji. “How do mermaids court?”  
 “I don’t understand,” Eren frowned.  
 “Courting… mating… sex…” Levi listed off more as Eren’s confusion continued. He sighed and leaned his head against the wall. “Reproduction.”  
 Eren’s eyes lit up at that before becoming guarded.  
 “Good, you have some idea… how does… one mermaid approach another one?”  
 The confusion returned to Eren’s eyes and Levi was becoming even more frustrated at his blatant inability to talk to him normally.  
 “Armin’s better at this,” Eren threw it out like it meant nothing.  
 “No, you’re a little too fond of Armin.”  
 “What’s wrong with that?”  
 “I want you to see me the same way!”  
   
 Eren slunk back in his tank, sitting along the bottom to face Levi properly. “What does that have to do with how more mermaids are made?” Eren was picking his words carefully again. He knew it would be better to just get Armin to talk to him at this point, but _he_ wanted some of that warmth as well. He never wanted to hear Eren so heartbroken as that song…  
 “Humans generally have a way of approaching someone they want to be with,” Levi started slowly. Eren seemed slightly interested at least. “It changes depending on how much money you have. The poorer you are, the more sentimental and less materialistic it is. The right item means a lot. That changes the further up the chain you go.”  
 “So?” Eren prodded.  
 Levi shifted slightly, finding explaining the entire process fairly odd. “The… person interested would approach the other with something showing their interest and if they’re interested as well they’ll accept the item.”  
   
 Eren stiffened, his hand touching the light chain of gems around his head.  
 “Is that what you were trying to do?” he asked quietly. “Buy me?” Eren stared at Levi, his eyes narrowing. “Are you trying to _buy_ my love?”  
 Levi snorted, Eren was both dense and right on the mark.  
   
 He leaned in to face Eren on his level.  
 “Why? Is it a problem?”  
 Eren scoffed, his eyes lighting up like the sun. “You can buy me all you want, but you can’t buy my love.”  
 Levi felt his face curl up into a possessive smile. “You forget Eren. I’m a pirate.”  
 Eren flinched back and Levi reached out a hand to brush against his cheeks.  
 “We pillage, we murder, we destroy. I take what I want. So, I _will_ steal your heart.”  
 Eren scowled and dove back under the water, keeping his eyes anywhere but on Levi.  
   
 He chuckled, it seemed that he had finally gotten through to him in some manner. He was guilty of all of the above, even if the crew believed he wasn’t. Embezzlement, desertion, lack of respect to commanding officers. It was probably the top of the list if he didn’t pay his dues.  
   
 Auruo knocked politely before entering with a tray of steaming food. Levi only tilted his head towards the desk. Auruo paused for a moment to nod at Eren as well before scurrying out.  
 “Are you intending to isolate me until I give in?” Eren asked sullenly.  
 Levi shrugged and he went to pick up his tea. “Eventually you’ll be taken off the ship,” he admitted. He would have to pick between Eren and Armin. A day he wished was further away than it was.  
 “But you won’t let me go home.”  
 “No. I… I can’t risk it.” Levi bit the inside of his cheek. God he really had gotten sappy, how the fuck had that happened.  
 “Then I don’t see any reason for me to talk to you anymore,” Eren replied coldly.  
 “Even if you knew that you’re the reason Armin will be safe?” Levi shot back. Eren stilled, his back facing Levi. He slowly turned around, every movement so precise.  
 “What do you mean?”  
 Levi let out a bark of laughter and stared down at his food.  
 “It means I’m a horrible person and I will do anything for something I want.”  
 “No! How am I protecting Armin if I never return to the ocean?” Eren demanded, splashing forward, almost tipping the tank.  
   
 Levi stared at the desperation in Eren’s eyes. Would he ever look like that if Levi had been in trouble? He doubted it. He didn’t know what he had been trying to accomplish. Nothing good happened when he shared things with people.  
 “It’s nothing you can help with,” he answered quietly and took up his fork.  
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll just let you muse over that 8D (tbh half the reason I keep writing ending notes is so the first one doesn't pop up in here OTL)


	13. Out of My Depth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren is bothered by Levi's comment and decides that it's time to figure out exactly what is going on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're now over halfway through the story! I hope you're all still enjoying it. Also the stupid thing changed to a question mark again, so just in case it happens again and I forget to fix it: This story is 25 chapters long.

 Levi had been acting strangely and it unnerved Eren. The captain had been serious enough when he was talking about stealing Eren’s heart to scare him, adding to his list of worries. If he had been able to correctly refute the very possibility of falling for the captain, things would be different. As it was, Levi had felt so alone when they were talking, like his pain was dug up from the void of his heart that Eren had found his voice locked in his throat. Then there was Levi’s comment about Armin. Eren had no idea how he was protecting Armin, especially if one of them had to leave.  
   
 So Eren decided that it was time to try and explore Levi’s room. There should be some hint of what was going on in Levi's papers. Now was the best time since the floor was newly washed, so any water tracks that Eren made wouldn't be noticeable. He had carefully kept his torso out of the water too so that the papers wouldn't get wet.  
   
 He waited for a while after Levi left, just to make sure that the captain didn't return suddenly. Then he had to try and get himself out quietly. He started with his tail, just flopping it over. The fish swirled around the water, surrounding him.  
 "I'm coming back," he whispered. "I'll be fine!"  
 He had been able to bask in the sun for long periods of time with his pod. Although, he did hope it would be just as easy to get in as out. He'd worry about that later though.  
   
 It was actually rather easy to slither out without even a sound. The movements to get to Levi's desk were harder though. He wasn't used to using his arms so much and trying to swim in the air would be far too noisy. It took some time, and part way he discovered moving his tail side to side helped a bit instead of it being just dead weight behind him.  
   
 It kinked his tail, using it to lift himself up to the desk to look at the papers. He glanced for words he might know, or for his or Armin's names. He had no luck. All the sheets seemed to have food names on them. He sighed, flopping back. It seemed impossible to figure out the captain. Perhaps he was like those fish that pretended to be poisonous, but weren't actually.  
   
 His eyes drifted over to the tank and the chest Levi always sat on. It was one of the two in the room, the other at the foot (why did they even call it a foot?) of the bed. The one Levi sat on looked far older than the other one. The wood's colour had washed away, but the other chest was far more battered.  
   
 Curiosity called and since one venture had failed, Eren decided it would be worth checking out the chest. It took less time to get back there, and all the fish had gathered in one spot where he was.  
 "I'm fine dammit. Stop trying to mother me," he grumbled. They were so insufferable sometimes. The angel fish would go so far as trying to _feed_ him.  
   
 It took a lot of pushing to finally get the lid open and warm air rushed out with some strange smell. Eren took in the contents. A battered book, hairpin and various pieces of clothing. There were a few odd fishing lures too. He wasn't sure how those hooks would attract any fish though. They looked too much like the sea. Perhaps they were something else entirely.  
 "That was disappointing," Eren mumbled. He closed the lid quietly and sighed. He should probably get back into the tank anyways.  
   
 Levi shouldn't be back for a while, but the man did manage to startle him from time to time. The swirling fish were incentive enough as well.  
 "I'm coming, I'm coming."  
   
 The ledge seemed much higher than before. He reached up to grab the edge and managed to flip his fin in before the tank started to tip. He held back a yelp as he let go. The water sloshed from side to side but didn't careen over the edge. He sighed in relief. He would have to think of another way to get back in.  
   
 Except the fish were definitely panicking. He huffed, wishing he could speak to them like Krista did. He'd be able to calm them down. Eren eyed the chest, wondering if he could manage to dive in from it. It would probably be a close call if he did.  
   
 The fish seemed to calm down a fair bit, only one of the angel fish was swimming around the tank quickly. He would have some time to figure this out.  
   
 It was the splash that first caught his attention. He glanced back at the tank to see the same angel fish jumping out of the water.  
 "What are you doing?" he hissed. The fish ignored him, circling around more, faster and repeating the jump to the edge.  
 "You're going to fa—" the fish jumped out and flopped on the floor gasping. Eren yelped and tried to reach out to plop it back into the tank. Just as he grasped it the door opened and Levi was staring at him.  
   
 He ignored the man to drop the fish back into the tank where they were all swimming happily. He would never trust a fish's actions again. They seemed smarter than he gave the credit for.  
 "Sorry," Eren mumbled. "I thought I could reach."  
 Levi sighed and just stared down at Eren for a while. Eren’s heart pounded, wondering if Levi would catch on to the simple lie. It wasn’t exactly _wrong_.  
 “Get in.”  
 Eren’s brows furrowed as he looked at Levi. He tapped the tank impatiently.  
 “I’ll try,” he murmured. He thought he heard Levi snort as he grabbed the edge and flopped his tail in. Strangely, the tank didn’t tip this time and he was able to plop back in. He smiled slightly and touched the angel fish that had jumped out.  
 “Even if we want to go outside, that isn’t a good way,” he scolded. He could see Levi’s smile from the corner of his eye. Eren turned to look at him, startled when it didn’t change.  
   
 It made him… Eren couldn’t figure out a word for it. But the Levi in front of him right now was very different from the Levi he thought he knew. He flinched as Levi’s hand brushed by his hair.  
 “What is it?” Eren stared into Levi’s eyes. They seemed to soften again as he drew away.  
 “Just making a decision.”  
 “If something happens to Armin—”  
 “You two will be fine… Everything should be fine.” Levi took in a deep breath and let it out before standing up.  
 “What about you?” Eren asked defensively. “You’re being so strange!”  
 “Does it matter as long as you’re free?”  
 Eren slunk lower in the tank. “Maybe,” he bubbled into the water.  
 “For fuck’s sake.” Levi gave an exasperated sigh. “ Bubbles!”  
 Eren gave him a small smile from underwater before letting himself slip under.  
   
 He guessed Levi didn’t realise just how clearly he could hear even if he was underwater. Since he started ranting about a _Commodore_ and hating what he would have to do to keep those he cared for safe. It didn’t make sense since Eren hadn’t done anything to change Levi’s opinion of him. That and they would ‘lose’ Levi in a day. He tried not to look in Levi’s direction, knowing his face would give away the confusion he felt and horror.  
   
 He drew up to take a breath when he had finally composed himself to face Levi.  
 “What, feeling talkative today?”  
 Eren scowled, Levi had to just always be so unsociable. It made him that much more tempted to drench him.  
 “Don’t think about it.”  
 “Too late.”  
 “Don’t _dare_ then.”  
 Eren huffed and spent the rest of the day observing Levi from the bottom of his tank.  
   
 He woke up when there were suddenly so many more voices on the boat.  
 “I heard you have quite the valuable treasure on board this time,” a smooth voice spoke outside the door.  
 “People talk too much.” Levi grunted.  
 “I don’t mind rumours, so long as you can pay your dues. You’ve been avoiding me.”  
 “Your dog keeps a close enough eye on me so that keeping in touch was meaningless.”  
 “Well, of course I have to protect my _investments_.”  
 Eren could feel the tension rise in the silence and slipped under the water. He didn’t think he wanted to see whoever it was on board.  
   
 He wouldn’t be able to see them anyways. Levi was very careful about making sure he wasn’t visible to the towns.  
 “Fine.” Levi was tense, unusually so.  
 Eren almost jumped out of the water as the door opened and he saw two sets of boots. He could hear the sharp inhale and he tried to sink even further down. All the fish were even trying to cover him even though there weren’t nearly enough of them.  
 “Where did you find it?” the smooth voice asked.  
 “Hanji pulled him up with a batch of fish. We think he’s been in some communication with them since.” Eren couldn’t see Levi, but was willing to bet that he was glowering into the water.  
 “Careless.”  
 “We didn’t have much choice. It was either put him in the ocean water for six hours or watch him die in the hold. The water was too cold.”  
   
 Eren held back a snort. The water wasn’t cold, the air was. The water was actually warmer than what he was used to, but he was too used to the hot sun drying him on dark rocks.  
 “It’s confirmed to be male?” The voice was doubtful and Eren found himself wishing Jean was around for once to lure the bastard overboard to chow on. Eren jolted as the tank was kicked and he glared balefully at the two of them. They continued and he supposed it would until he emerged.  
   
 He crossed his arms and came up enough that half his head was above the waterline.  
 “He identifies as male, at least with those he talks to.”  
 Eren’s eyes flicked to the person with Levi. He was much taller, making it difficult to really see any details. That and he was so close to him.  
 “Hello, I’m Commodore Erwin. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”  
 Eren wanted to drench them both from head to toe with water; except that Levi’s floor would get wet and the Captain was stressed enough already.  
   
 So he answered the best way he could: He remained silent and slipped back under the water, pretending to be taken in by the fish.  
 “Not too sociable is he?” Commodore laughed. Levi only snorted and didn’t elaborate. Eren found himself a little more grateful to Levi now.  
 “Just tell your goons to keep their hands off. The crew’s rather… attached to him.”  
 “But Levi, he could pay off all your debts.”  
 Eren definitely didn’t like the slimy tone of Commodore. Who had such a ridiculous name like ‘Commodore’ anyways?  
 Levi snorted and Eren felt chills at the return of his smile. It lacked the warmth it had before. It pulled at Eren’s heart, telling him that this was someone he—  
 “Not happening. This one is a package with Armin. He’s the only one that’s had any success in communicating with him.”  
 “Oh?”  
 “Armin isn’t available. You don’t have enough to pay for both of them.”  
 Eren’s jaw clenched. Levi was talking about _selling_ him. Him or Armin, to this man.  
   
 “Your debt remains and it’s due,” Commodore sounded irritated now. “How are you proposing to pay?”  
 “Me.” Levi’s chin stuck out. Eren saw a flash of brown and yellow at the door and turned slightly so he could see. He held back a laugh, it seemed that half the crew was listening in and the other half were unloading and switching who was listening.  
 “You?” Commodore tilted Levi’s chin more, probably so his bug-like eyes would meet his. “What makes you think that you’d be worth even one of them?”  
 “You would know wouldn’t you?” There was poison in Levi’s words. “After all, you couldn’t catch me.”  
 A slap rang out and a collective gasp rounded the room. The two men were suddenly aware of their audience.  
   
 Commodore straightened his jacket and clicked his heels together. “I will consider your offer. But in case, I would suggest you prepare an _alternate_ payment.” Eren could tell the sleaze was looking in his tank.  
 “Captain?” Armin almost whispered as Commodore glided off out of the office.  
 “What is it Arlert?” Levi sounded tired.  
 “Eren can hear you even if you whisper when he’s underwater.”  
 Levi stiffened and looked into the tank, looking desperate and horrified.  
 Eren rose back out of the water, meeting his eyes. “How else would I know what’s going on?”  
 Levi’s jaw clenched and Eren could see him slowly forcing himself to relax.  
 “Why wasn’t I aware of this?”  
 “Because you kept Armin and Hanji away.” Eren flicked a drop of water at Levi. “All I have to get back at you is petty.”  
   
 Levi sighed lightly and stared at Eren. He looked lost, but resolute. “I wouldn’t have said it the way I did if I knew you were listening.”  
 “He cares about you!” Hanji piped up.  
 “What was the deal with Commodore anyways?” Eren grumbled, slumping on his edge. “He’s just ooze and it makes me gag.”  
 A smile twitched at Levi’s lips even as the crew laughed.  
 “Erwin, commodore is a rank,” Levi corrected.  
 Eren frowned; he hadn’t heard it from any of the boats before.  
 “They can command other ships, you probably haven’t seen them because you avoid groups of vessels,” Armin added.  
 “Fleet,” Levi corrected.  
 “He wouldn’t know what a fleet is Captain,” Armin replied smoothly.  
 Levi turned and the crew went silent before he looked back at Eren. “Erwin used to be my captain and is why I went pirate.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What _will_ happen next? Hmmm.


	14. Desperation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get a little tense on the _Relentless_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _200_ kudos and over 100 comments as of the last chapter. Thank you all so much.

 Eren watched Levi warily. Levi had refused to answer any further questions, going as far as slamming the door shut and threatening the fish if Eren didn’t keep his mouth shut. He didn’t know how to deal with the unnatural silence.  
   
 Levi wasn’t even pretending to work. He was just staring at his desk with his head in his hands. Eren was about to break the silence when there was a knock on the door.  
 “Go the fuck away.” No surprise there for the _aicaya_.  
   
 What _was_ unexpected was that the person ignored it and came in anyway. Eren glanced at him, scowling that it was another ‘giant’. As if that one fish-head wasn’t enough. He glanced at Levi waiting for him to start yelling. Instead, Levi stiffened and his eyes focused on the person. With more distance, Eren thought the giant looked vaguely familiar. Was it one of the crew maybe? Levi seemed to know him well enough anyways as he stiffly took an envelope from him.  
 “Levi, Eren.” The giant turned and nodded at them both. “Erwin sends his regards.”  
 Eren stiffened at the name, his eyes trailing the man until the door closed again. “Who was that?”  
 “Erwin’s dog. A dog is—”  
 “I know what a dog is.”  
 “Someday you should tell me how you know some words and not others.”  
 “I listened to boats and went to the shore. Plus we all talk to each other.”  
 Levi frowned as he slit the envelope open with trembling hands. “But being able to…” his voice trailed off and Eren thought the temperature in the room plummeted before soaring to an unbearable temperature.  
   
 Eren dove under water, staring at Levi as he shredded the letter and clenched the envelope in his hand before stalking out of the room. Eren almost jolted out of the water when the door opened again.  
 “Eren?” Hanji whispered.  
 “Hanji, what are you doing here?” he hissed back.  
 “Why’s Levi scraping every piece of dirt off the ship?”  
 Eren raised his hands in a helpless look. “He read a paper and shredded it before he went back out.”  
 “Was there anything special about it?”  
 Eren frowned trying to recall what he could.  
 “Some big guy that looked a little familiar brought it in. It had this weird smudge on it.”  
 “Was it shaped like anything?”  
 “Not that I could see. It seemed round and black.”  
 “What?” Hanji inhaled sharply.  
   
 Eren straightened up, suddenly alert. “Does that mean something to you?”  
 Hanji bit her lip, her eyes going to the door and she froze. Eren found his gaze drift there as well and widen at who was there.  
 “Captain said I should stay in here for now,” Armin whispered. His hands wrung at his shirt. “I’m sorry for interrupting, and eavesdropping.”  
 “It’s okay,” Hanji deflated with a heavy sigh. Eren stared at her, never seeing the woman look so dejected and in the dumps before. “It would make its way around the crew anyways. Eren, can you tell me what you can about the man?”  
 Eren shook his head. “Too tall.”  
 “Mike was in earlier, why does it matter?” Armin glanced between them.  
 Hanji walked quickly to the door and dragged Armin in, closing the door behind him.  
 “Mike’s been here on Erwin’s orders,” Hanji murmured. “Ensuring that their… _bargain_ was upheld.”  
 “Bargain? The captain had a deal with the navy?” Armin’s head whipped towards Hanji.  
 “What? I thought pirates and navy didn’t get along… but then Levi said Erwin was his commanding officer too…” Eren trailed off.  
   
 “Oh? He told you that?” Hanji stared at him intently.  
 Eren blinked at her.  
 “She was in town when he mentioned it,” Armin offered.  
 “Oh… yeah the entire crew at the time overheard but he locked himself in after.” Eren slunk in the tank a bit.  
 “But then…”  
 “Erwin wants to _buy_ me,” Eren complained.  
 “And?”  
 Eren straightened so he could look Hanji in the eye. “You knew!”  
 “Yes. When Levi wanted to save you I knew. For my normal experiments he would have just told me to let you back into the ocean, but he wanted to keep you.”  
 “Hanji, why?” Armin breathed. She glanced between them.  
 “This doesn’t leave this room, you give _no_ sign you ever heard this and that you heard it from me. Well Levi would be able to tell that—”  
 “I promise,” Eren interrupted and leaned in slightly.  
 Armin nodded and stepped forward as well.  
   
 She glanced between the two of them once more.  
 “We had _permission_ ,” she spat the word. “To keep Armin on board for five years. After that he was to be _given_ to Commodore Erwin. Unless Levi was able to pay off all his debts at the time, including his acts of piracy.”  
 “How would defying him change anything?” Armin asked. Hanji gave a wry smile.  
 “Time. Our targets are primarily slave ships, and quite specific merchant companies. Most of the navy after us are acting on their own. Not that they can catch us,” Hanji barked out a laugh.  
 “How does that change anything?” Eren interjected.  
 “Erwin can bring us to the right people’s attention… then we’d have to flee the entire navy.” Hanji folded her hands, looking intensely between the two of them. “Then it would just be a matter of time.”  
   
 Her face faded into a half smile. “Although you certainly worked some magic on him Eren!”  
 Eren stared at her blankly and Armin looked at her, just as confused.  
 “You haven’t noticed?” Hanji touched the circlet around Eren’s head. “Levi doesn’t give things to people he doesn’t care for. Not even a scrap of paper.” She glanced at Armin as well. His eyes went wide as he touched a pouch on his belt.  
 “Maybe it had something to do with Eren’s specific qualities,” Armin murmured.  
 “ _Armin!_ ” Eren protested. He had told him that in confidence!  
 “You were here Eren. What did Levi offer?” Armin’s eyes were cold and Eren retreated into the back of the tank.  
 “Himself,” Eren whispered.  
 “Are you saying you owe him absolutely nothing?” Armin’s eyes blazed. Eren’s own lit up in anger, the resentment unleashing itself.  
 “I’m saying he owes me far more than I owe him!”  
 “Eren,” Hanji interjected calmly. “What was Armin talking about? It might actually help, and it will go no further than me. If I hadn’t kept you, this wouldn’t be an issue. It isn’t _entirely_ Levi’s doing.”  
   
 Eren glared at her and just sunk underwater. He had enough of them. They all just wanted to use him and didn’t care about him.  
 “Eren, if you tell me I don’t really have a reason to go after your friends to study them,” Hanji murmured. “That’s all it is. I want to know.”  
 He splashed her and ignored Armin’s protests. He couldn’t trust them. None of them cared. He shouldn’t have bothered worrying about Armin.  
 “Eren… it’s the… the first time anyone did anything for me besides my parents,” Armin murmured. “Levi let me study even when they would laugh and say it was useless and I was too weak. Please… help me so that I can help him.”  
   
 Eren poked back up but didn’t turn to face them. “Knowing about them won’t help.”  
 “No, but I do want to know more about _you_ and how you’re different from your friends. Then we can figure out how you affected Levi _and_ ,” Hanji had her insane grin on, he could hear it. “If we can use that to affect others as well.”  
 Eren turned around to face them. Hanji was smiling insanely and Armin was looking a little guilty.  
 “ _Aicaya_ ,” he breathed. “I’m an _aicaya_.”  
 Hanji seemed to fade away, her expression becoming wooden. “Outcasts, converts others,” she muttered. “Well maybe that won’t work on Erwin then. Do you know what you can do?”  
 Eren shook his head. “It’s instinctive. I… I can force the singing but… I don’t like singing really.”  
 “Really you have such a beautiful voice!”  
 Eren shook his head again. “It puts people to sleep,” he complained.  
   
 Hanji and Armin glanced at each other before looking back at Eren.  
 “I didn’t feel sleepy.” Armin’s voice was quiet.  
 “Yeah I felt like the world was a little more beautiful. Before I would have agreed with Levi that this world is just so full of shit that there’s no good way to clean it all up… after your song well.” She gave a small smile. “I feel just a little more like fighting to keep it beautiful.”  
   
 Eren stared at Armin, wondering what he might have heard. The boy only fidgeted and avoided Eren’s gaze.  
 “Eren… why did you kiss me?”  
 Eren looked a little guilty, he hadn’t known at the time that such an act was special, but he didn’t know how to word it.  
 “Levi says you don’t reproduce,” Hanji’s voice broke through quietly. “So something like that wouldn’t mean much to you would it?”  
 Eren shook his head. “It’s… a greeting? Not really because some show affection too…”  
 “What was your _intent_ is what Armin wants to know.”  
 Eren glanced up to meet his eyes. “I wanted to protect him any way I could,” Eren whispered. “No matter the cost.”  
   
 The two sat back, staring at each other and then at Eren.  
 “Wait, so you can _convert_ people to mermaids? Like in the stories?”  
   
 “What are you doing in here?” Levi’s voice was rougher than normal; his eyes looked half dead as he stared at Hanji.  
 “Getting an update?” she squeaked.  
 “Out. Both of you. Arlert you’re to stay out of sight of the shore.”  
 The two scampered out quickly, Armin doubling back to close the door.  
   
 Levi was staring at Eren, who unfortunately couldn’t run away.  
 “C-captain?” he started quietly.  
 “It’s nothing. Just… everything’s so dirty. Even after cleaning just…”  
 Eren reached out instinctively, bringing Levi closer to him. “Tell me,” he whispered.  
   
 Levi laughed and crouched down. The glass was in his way, it wasn’t enough to help Levi like this. The man that offered himself so that Armin and Eren would be safe. Maybe Armin was right, and he did owe him a little. But he still didn’t know enough to trust him at all.  
   
 So he managed to tip himself over the edge of the tank again, still holding onto Levi and drawing him closer.  
 “Please,” he added, tugging Levi slightly. He hummed happily when Levi sat next to him, leaning against his shoulder. How odd it felt that someone that stripped him of everything he knew and loved leaning on him, taking comfort from him and his presence. Something told him that Levi was like him, the only difference being where they were raised. But he was still holding him here, albeit with some good company and he wasn’t starving. In fact Eren’s main complaint would be his lack of exercise.  
   
 “What are you thinking?” Levi murmured. “How disgusting I am for selling myself? For bringing you here in case it didn’t work?”  
 “I was thinking how you were like me,” Eren murmured. Levi laughed, falling over onto Eren’s lap. His breathing slowly evened out and Eren started when he rolled over to look at him.  
 Levi’s eyes were oddly open, taking in Eren’s actual appearance.  
 “Why did I even think of such a thing?” Levi murmured, reaching up to cup Eren’s cheek.  
 Eren hesitated a moment before running a hand tentatively through Levi’s hair. He seemed to relax into the touch so Eren continued, humming a song without realising it.  
   
 “Is there anything I can do for you?” Levi asked quietly. “Anything you’d need when you’re with Erwin?”  
 Eren paused and stared at Levi. His heart sank; Levi had made his choice.  
 “Take care of Armin,” his voice wavered slightly. “And… let the fish go?” Eren gave a small smile and Levi scoffed.  
 “Eren, I’m a fucking pirate. You could ask for anything and what you’re worried about is someone I care for anyways and to let your fish out into the ocean?”  
 Eren gave a small shrug. “I could ask you not to sell me, but given the situation…”  
 “Not happening,” Levi whispered. “What else could I do?”  
 Eren thought long and hard. Something was nagging at him about Levi, how he didn’t know anything.  
 “Tell me about you,” Eren suggested. “Your family, why you started sailing…”  
 Levi’s gaze hardened slightly before softening once more.  
 “Are you sure? That’s a rather long story.”  
 “I’m sure,” Eren answered strongly.  
 A smile quirked at Levi’s lips and Eren soon found himself hanging on every word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Flashback time next week!


	15. Motivation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Memories can shape us into what we are.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only 10 chapters left 8D

 Levi could recall few good memories from his childhood. He could remember his mother’s smile when he would run into the ocean, warning him not to go too far. But, the clearest memories he had were his parents’ faces of despair.  
   
 The first time was the day that pirates attacked the city. They had been far enough from the port that they hadn’t seen any pirates, but the backlash swept across the citizens. He knew now that his father had lost his job. As a child, he only knew that it was odd that his father was staying home more than his mother; how more people snubbed them when they visited the market.  
   
 His clearest memory was his mother’s face when she was sick, his father’s face drawn when he held her hand. He was either with her, or staring at the family knife. It was passed down from father to eldest son, he had been told, once they began their own family.  
   
 *  
   
 Eren glanced at Levi’s waist, staring at the worn out knife. Levi’s eyes followed and his hand stopped caressing the hilt.  
 “Yes, it… it helps remind me.”  
 Eren almost asked a question before closing his mouth. It wasn’t a good time to ask anything yet, so he nodded for the story to continue.  
   
 *  
   
 He remembered where his mother worked, and thought he might be able to work in her place. He had been confused when they kicked him back onto the street, saying that they ‘didn’t serve kids’. He hadn’t understood why, when he used to be able to wait in a small room for his mother. He stayed sitting out in front until one of the ladies he recognised came out and convinced them to give him some work.  
   
 He was to follow instructions to the letter and only wash the sheets. He couldn’t leave the room he worked in, and when there were three knocks on the door he could get paid and leave. There were a few of them working in the laundry area, but the faces changed every night. He learned how to get the oddest stains out of the sheets in those years.  
   
 His father had been furious of course, only held back by his mother asking quiet questions. They both made him promise not to accept any other type of work in that place, that his father would make sure to find work instead. His father swore he would get a job so that Levi wouldn’t have to work there anymore.  
   
 *  
   
 Eren stared as an odd smile crossed Levi’s face. His lips had the gentlest upturn, even as his eyes reflected sorrow. Eren felt his own heart thump in his chest, some instinct urging at him that he had to shove down. He forced his attention back to Levi.  
   
 *  
   
 His mother passed away a few years later, never truly regaining her health. The house felt heavy, the thunking of the bottle loud as his father drank away the feeling. Levi only felt numb, wandering the streets, fighting whoever attacked him, anything so that he could feel _something_.  
   
 The drinking drained their finances even more, and Levi fought to keep the house they all lived in; to keep the memories of better times. He broke his promise to his parents to keep the little he could.  
   
 He didn’t remember a time he had resented the pirates more. They hadn’t killed any of his family, but had ruined it all the same. That was when he met Erwin.  
   
 Erwin had just been promoted to Captain, with command of his own ship, and was being ‘treated’ to Levi’s particular establishment by his peers. His mannerisms confused Levi, so used to the blank uncaringness of the typical patrons.  
   
 They, mostly Erwin, only talked for that first night. Levi spent most of the night shell-shocked that someone would be content to pay his rates to just _talk_ to him. In fact, he only spoke as Erwin left.  
   
 Erwin had made a passing remark about preferring _willing_ partners, rather than desperate people that would do anything for coin when Levi lost it. He lashed out, kicking Erwin square in the jaw, demanding how the means should mean anything about how he was as a person.  
   
 Erwin liked his fire, his passion, and asked him only one more question. “What would you do if you could get away?”  
 The answer had come so naturally, so inflamed with the years of work and bitterness.  
 “I would kill all the pirates. Every last one.”  
   
 *  
   
 “Wait, then why did you become one?” Eren interjected. He flinched slightly as Levi raised his hand, but the Captain only shoved his face away, scowling.  
 “Do you want me to finish the fucking story or not?”  
 “Sorry,” Eren mumbled. “Please keep going.”  
   
 *  
   
 Erwin promised that he would see Levi’s dream come true. Levi assumed it was an empty promise, he had heard it so many times before. He mouthed the ritualistic ‘yes I’ll think about it’, before seeing him out the door.  
   
 He let himself forget the offer. It hurt too much to dream of living without worrying about catching ill like his mother; to think what it would be like if his father regained himself and they repaired their fractured family. What he did remember the next day, was hearing about impeding heavy penalties for assaulting naval officers.  
   
 His heart had been in his throat that entire day, wondering if the Captain had reported him. There wasn’t anyone waiting for him at home though. No one from the navy, not even his father. In fact, the house felt oddly empty. Nothing had moved, only his father’s knife was on the table with a simple note on top. ‘Sorry’, it read.  
   
 He hadn’t understood what it meant for so long, only that he was alone, that everything he tried was for nothing. He felt empty once more, just like when his mother died. Enough so that he wandered the streets, hoping for a fight. Instead, he ran into the hulking blond again.  
   
 He assumed it was something in his eyes so that Erwin took pity on him. He was shown around Erwin’s new ship, introduced to most of the crew that only leered at him.  
 “Have you thought about the offer?” The question stunned everyone into silence. It broke his emptiness; he felt hope flaring through his entire body.  
 “I thought you were lying.”  
 “I wasn’t, but there isn’t much left here for you, and there’s a world out there.”  
 Levi glanced around the crew. “Fine, but if anyone touches me without my permission I’m throwing them overboard.”  
 Erwin had smiled at him, only nodding assent.  
   
 It took several years for Levi to develop his sea-sense. On a good day he could just _feel_ the ocean, how the wind and sea bottom would change the waves. It was on one such day, where his call was ignored and the _Freedom_ ended up stuck at port for repairs.  
   
 It was shortly after that he received a promotion, with his own ship. Erwin said it was because of his call and skill that he had recommended him to his superiors upon his promotion. Levi would still be serving under Erwin, except he had his own ship now.  
   
 It took some time to get used to how the _Relentless_ ran, and his first year ran without _too_ much trouble. Until one incident changed everything. There were still some days he wished that they had just set fire to the ghost ship instead of checking for people and found one insane woman that turned his entire life on its head.  
   
 *  
   
 “So Hanji was always like that?” Eren grinned.  
 Levi glared at him. “If you don’t shut your mouth, I’m stopping.”  
 “Sorry.”  
   
 *  
   
 Hanji got into _everything_ , asked _anything_ and never seemed to sleep. In the end, he locked her in the hold until they reached port. Even then, he left her there for the first day so that he could actually relax.  
   
 Except all of her information only worried him further. Her ‘ghost ship’ was originally a merchant ship. It had been chartered, and escorted by the navy, yet the same Captain confiscated its goods on Erwin’s order within the week.  
   
 No matter how much ale he bought, the sailors refused to answer anything about the types of goods that the ship had been carrying. Even asking Erwin resulted in him being shoved out politely, with a reminder to keep his nose in his own business.  
   
 He was too restless to just return to the _Relentless_ and wandered the familiar streets. His house was empty now, only filling him with bitterness and an odd tang of sweetness long forgotten. It only held the wisps of memory, reminding him further that the _Relentless_ was his true home now.  
   
 He couldn’t get any sleep, the questions clawing at his mind. So he decided to make someone else’s life hell for a while, and there was a perfect victim on his ship. She jolted awake when he slammed the cage bars.  
 “What were you transporting?” he demanded. It took her a few moments to reorient herself before she smiled, and bullshit poured from her mouth.  
   
 *  
   
 “Wait, what?” Eren tilted his head. “I don’t know that word.”  
 Levi pressed a hand to his forehead. “She rambled without answering my question.”  
 “Is that what it means?”  
 “No. Ask Arlert later. Now shut up.”  
   
 *  
   
 She talked him in circles so that he had even forgotten the question. Instead she drew him in with her studies of the sea and the creatures living in it. He left confused and only realised the next day that she had ignored his question completely. He returned to demand answers, threatening to get Erwin involved if he left without any this time.  
   
 She became oddly quiet and still at the threat before she told a tale. It irritated him at the beginning, but the entire story pieced together slowly. She would travel from place to place, returning _things_ to their proper place. It wasn’t always lawful, but given that she had returned a few significant pieces of history to a few governments she had been left alone. At least for a while. A week before Levi found her, she had been transporting a few _unique_ animals back to their normal habitats when other ‘merchants’ caught up and along with the navy, stripped everything she had and left her on the boat alone, rudderless.  
   
 She got a little side-tracked after that, describing a system she thought of so that something like that wouldn’t happen again. He had been more troubled about what had happened to her and found himself in Erwin’s office once again.  
   
 *  
   
 Eren’s jaw dropped, realising that the ‘system’ was how they had managed to outrun Mikasa and Ymir. Hanji was just as terrifying as he had thought. Eren frowned as Levi took a deep breath, clenching the side of his tank. Each word began to sound forced. He hesitated a moment before reaching out to touch Levi’s hand, rubbing it softly to calm him.  
   
 *  
   
 Too many things happened in that meeting. Erwin kept dodging his questions, even as he was writing condolence letters. In his frustration, Levi had grabbed one and a word in particular caught his eye. _Sorry_. The same sorry, the same paper that had been with his father’s dagger years ago.  
   
 He had given everything to Erwin, the man that made him more than nothing. Yet it was all a lie. Erwin had taken the last thing from him. He had stormed out, ignoring Erwin’s calls for him to return, and set sail with the dusk tides.  
   
 He might have been able to turn back, except for how _irritating_ the people Erwin sent after him were, acting so self-important. He ran away, never looking back. It took a while for Mike to catch up with him, with a written note from Erwin.  
   
 Erwin stated they had been declared outlaws, and he regretted his actions and offered a chance to talk. Levi had relented, bringing Hanji along with him. They worked out between the two of them what Levi would and wouldn’t concede before talking. If it wasn’t for Hanji he probably would have ended up serving directly on Erwin’s ship again.  
   
 They came to an agreement. Levi was fine with being declared a pirate, Erwin would keep an eye on them through Mike and they would have a certain _tax_ to cover the cost of the _Relentless_. He was permitted to free slaves and raid from certain ships, a list that Erwin would provide.  
   
 It worked well until Armin was on board. Erwin demanded either the boy, or full payment. Levi and Hanji argued to keep him on board, that it wasn’t healthy to just _plop_ him into the navy before he could adjust. They would provide an environment so that Armin could gain experience in actual navigation of a ship, and be of far more use. They had five years, with each year Levi found himself drawn more to the light in Armin’s eyes, for the familiar feeling it brought again.  
   
 But he would lose everything he had gained, once again, to the person he had trusted most.  
   
 *  
   
 Levi was hunched over so that Eren barely hesitated before brushing Levi’s hair with his fingers to calm him. His heart was pounding and he swallowed as he felt his feelings shift. He hoped that he was wrong about how he felt: that his heart wouldn’t be stolen by the two wonderful people had met.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whenever I read this I keep thinking of the interruptions like the kid from the Princess Bride for some reason


	16. Freedom is a Cage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The _Relentless_ faces a crisis.

 The next few days were anything but quiet. The waves at port were rougher with winds driving the rain against the windows. Normally, Eren would be fed up being stuck in one room for this long; except that every time Levi came back he was shivering from the rain that had driven itself into his skin and Eren would be thankful he wasn’t feeling the chill.  
 “One abnormal storm after another,” Levi grumbled. “Not a good sign. I’d want to get out of port but…”  
 “There’s still the issue with Erwin,” Eren finished quietly. He found himself disliking the man even more as time went on.  
   
 Thankfully Erwin hadn’t returned to the ship, although Eren had no idea why. He hadn’t seen Armin for a while either. He glanced at Levi, wondering if he would be in a merciful mood and answer his questions. After all, between himself and Armin, one of them was staying while the other left. He had barely opened his mouth when Levi started to talk.  
 “I’ll have Armin come in later. He’s been getting soaked and he’s as restless as you. Damn Erwin and his meetings. At this rate we’ll be port bound for a week.”  
   
 Eren didn’t bother to pay attention to the rest, instead he poked the fish, watching them squirm or laugh as he would hit a ticklish spot.  
 “You’ve been quiet,” Levi broke the silence.  
 “There’s not much to say.”  
 “Like hell. I told you my story and there’s ‘not much to say’?”  
 “So? You’re human, I knew that. You aren’t as much of an asshole as you seem, I had figured that out already.”  
 Levi snorted.  
 “You threatened Armin when I didn’t cooperate, but didn’t actually lay a hand on him. You yell at your crew when they’re goofing around because you’re worried. Hanji saved you from yourself so she’s the only one you feel you can really trust.” Eren smiled a little as Levi stiffened. “Like I said, I figured it out before you told me. All that I really learnt was why you were afraid to get attached to people.”  
   
 Levi snorted. “You think that you’re so smart don’t you?”  
 Eren shrugged. “Maybe.”  
 “But you got caught.”  
 “I know.”  
 “How did you get caught?” Levi seemed bewildered.  
 “Does it matter?”  
 Levi’s eyes hardened.  
 “I don’t want to tell you.” Eren slipped so his mouth was underwater.  
 “Fine,” Levi huffed. “I’ll go get Arlert, at least you can be talkative with one person.”  
   
 Eren blinked as Levi stalked out. He hadn’t really upset him had he? He sighed and looked out of the window again. The rain seemed to be slowing slightly, perhaps he could go out later today if the sun came out, just for a little bit.  
   
 “Eren?”  
 Eren jumped and smiled sheepishly as Armin stood just inside the door. “Hey.” He still hadn’t really managed to explain why he had kissed Armin, perhaps this was a good time.  
 “The captain asked me to… uh stick my butt here for now.”  
 Eren snorted. “That’s just like him isn’t it?”  
 Armin gave him a weak smile. “A bit.”  
 “I was worried, he didn’t seem well earlier.”  
 “The cold rain is starting to get to us all. I’ve only really seen a storm like this once…”  
 “I don’t think they could have found us Armin,” Eren admitted sadly. Ymir wouldn’t consent to leaving their safe place, not since Krista was safe there and they had all taken to calling it their home.  
   
 It was the one time he forgot just how much influence Krista had on Ymir. As the sun finally broke through the clouds there was a shattering sound of wood.  
 “Captain! We’re taking on water!” He could hear the scuffling around deck. Eren’s eyes widened as the crew began to panic. There was a second loud boom as the ship shook.  
 Footsteps cascaded around them, running all around until the door slammed open. Both Eren and Armin flinched instinctively as they saw Levi’s livid eyes.  
 “Get Eren to the dock,” Levi ordered, “ _Now_ Arlert!”  
 Armin looked like he wanted to protest, but obligingly started to push Eren out the door. Eren wondered how Armin would manage to get him there. If it was anyone on the crew it might have been possible to carry him, but he doubted that Armin would be able to.  
   
 He was right and they hadn’t gone far when the ship began to tilt. The tank tipped and Eren was able to grab Armin before they slammed into the ship wall. Eren coughed, holding the blond tight.  
 He blinked away stars; he was hearing things wasn’t he? He swore he could hear that asshole’s voice singing, calling men into the water.  
 “Jean?” he whispered. The crew were dazed by the song even as it brought Eren back into awareness.  
 “ _Jean you asshole shut up!_ ” Eren yelled.  
 “Ha! I told you assholes!” the familiar voice crowed.  
 “Eren?” Armin whispered. Eren’s eyes stayed closed. He had promised he wouldn’t try to escape. In return, Armin would be safe.  
 “You shouldn’t listen Armin, his voice sucks and he can’t even lure anyone,” Eren laughed weakly. “His friends though…” Eren shivered as the pure voices began, calling to him. “If we fall,” Eren breathed. “Take a deep breath and hold it.”  
 “What?” Armin took in a sharp breath just as Eren felt his back slam into the water. He gasped, taking in water until a soothing song wrapped around him. He held onto Armin. He would protect this one person at least.  
   
 Eren coughed as he was dragged onto a rock, Armin along with him.  
 “Oi, you just couldn’t let go could you?” Jean grumbled. “Now we have this shitty thing to deal with.”  
 “Shut up,” Eren growled.  
 “Eren, it’s true? After we were looking for you for so long?” Mikasa asked, her eyes on Armin.  
 Eren bristled.  
 “Either way you held onto him tight enough… Feed them both. I’ll get Ymir and Krista.” Mikasa’s eyes were cold.  
 “What has her tentacles in a twist?” Eren sighed. It felt nice being outside, but at the same time it felt like he was still trapped.  
 “You were holding a two-legger,” Jean replied exasperatedly. “Of course they’re going to be pissed. Hell out of all of us, _you’re_ the one that should be furthest from them.”  
 Eren huffed slightly, swaying his tail. It felt so strange not feeling glass beside him.  
 “Eren! You’re alright!” a few voices called.  
 “It seems so,” Eren muttered. He pushed back Armin’s hair, was he still breathing? He let out a sigh of relief at seeing his chest move up and down slightly.  
 “Oi, suicidal idiot. Get your ass over here so you can talk to Krista. Then _we’re_ going to have a talk,” Ymir called.  
   
 Eren stiffened, holding Armin close.  
 “No one will touch him, for now,” Mikasa’s voice was almost dead. Eren felt a shiver down his spine before he nodded and followed Ymir down in a dive. The channels among the rocks were so different from the ones that he knew. But Krista’s room was still the same, surrounded by fish. Her face was haggard and her colours faded. He knew why the pod came for him now.  
 ‘ _Eren… You’re safe. Oh god you’re safe!_ ’ She threw her arms around him, holding him close. ‘ _I worried so much! Especially when you didn’t come back. Are you alright?_ ’  
 She giggled a little when he tapped his throat. Krista was prone to forgetting that some of them couldn’t talk underwater. Jean and the other sirens could sing underwater, and Ymir and Mikasa could create bubbles to write. He sighed as they rose and broke the surface.  
   
 “Eren! Is this your family?” Armin scampered over his eyes wide. “How was I able to hold my breath that long?”  
 “ _You kissed him?_ ” Mikasa shrieked. Eren flattened against the rock behind him. “ _You kissed him and brought him here?_ ”  
 “Technically, that was you,” Eren mumbled, looking at the ocean. He was tired already and had barely even swum. “I was holding…” Eren slipped off the rock slightly and started as Krista held him up.  
 “Are you okay?” she asked.  
 “He hasn’t been able to swim much since he got sick,” Armin offered.  
 “You let him get sick?” Mikasa’s voice turned deadlier.  
 “ _Back. Off,_ ” Krista hissed. Eren blinked at her until three angel fish prodded at him happily. The damage was done though and Armin was shaking.  
 “You need to stay out of the water,” Mikasa ordered. “You won’t like what it does to you. _You_ , shouldn’t have gotten involved.”  
 “How else could I protect him?” Eren hissed, trying to claw his way back up the rock.  
 “ _Protect him?_ What about us? What about protecting _us?_ ”  
 “He did,” Armin interjected quietly. “I… I didn’t even realise it until now… None of the details that made it to Hanji even touch on the depth… I only… I only know that the fish that were with Eren could communicate to someone else and that’s because he chose to tell me.”  
 Eren glanced at Ymir, wondering if there was a possibility of breaking some tension. “Ymir can tell you more about the ocean than I can Armin. She’s been around longer.”  
 Armin let out a bright smile and Eren couldn’t even take apart all the questions that fell off of tongue.  
   
 Ymir laughed. “No wonder you got to Eren! Oooh I’ll answer your questions pretty boy, but you might not like the answers.”  
 “Oi, does that mean he isn’t lunch?”  
 “Go feed a shark Jean!” Eren called back.  
 “I wasn’t the one caught by some two-leggers!”  
 “Yeah well you would have just—”  
 Both of them yelped as rocks dropped on their heads.  
 “Enough,” Mikasa ordered. “The _issue_ will be resolved after they’re both fit. We didn’t save them just so they would die more than a league away.” She turned her hard gaze to Eren. He hadn’t realised just how terrifying she could be before, now that her anger was focused on him. “If you hadn’t saved Krista, you would have been exiled right away. By letting you both get your strength back I’m giving you a chance. Prove me wrong,” she advised.  
   
 Eren nodded slowly, not really able to do anything else or understanding.  
 Jean was smirking at him and Eren wanted to just lay him flat, but that would have to wait until after he recovered. Armin seemed to be alright so far, chattering away on a rock at Ymir. He smiled slightly at seeing Armin so relaxed and drifted off, his arms holding him on the rock. He was vaguely aware of arms moving him, stabilising him and a familiar warmth filling him.  
   
 It felt nice waking up to the sun beating on his back. It took a while for him to remember why that was so wrong.  
 “Oh, the bastard’s awake now? Your little princess there has quite the mouth and brain,” Ymir called.  
 “Thanks for helping,” Eren grumbled.  
 “Go eat. Your colour is off.”  
 “Your personality is off.” Eren ducked as she sent a wave at him, an unfamiliar laugh erupted as he turned over to see her face.  
   
 He definitely learned to not tease Ymir again when he banged against a rock that wasn’t there before. His heart dropped, remembering that his family had moved just to find him. The laugh faded to a hurt smile. He hadn’t wanted to cause such pain or turmoil. It took more effort than he remembered to drive himself back up to the surface.  
 “He might not be able to! Let me ge—”  
 “He’s right there,” Armin interrupted. “See? He’ll just be weaker for a while until he gets used to swimming again. It’ll probably be a little while until he can go long distances.”  
 “What about you? _Human?_ You won’t survive out here long. Are you going to ask us to take you to shore?”  
 Armin shook his head, staring at his hands.  
 “I… I’ll manage until Eren gets better at least. I can’t really ask a favour from the rest of you.”  
 Ymir glanced between the two of them. “Both of you have some balls. Fine, I owe you _both_ enough to talk to Mikasa about getting your human buddy some shelter and wood. Just get better.”  
 Eren gave her a small smile before glancing at Armin.  
 “How did you get _Ymir_ on your side?”  
 “I was talking to Krista,” Armin wrung his hands. “She… was really happy when I was asking her about some of the fish and how she could talk to them… but then Ymir came in all protective—”  
 “She does that. Especially with Krista. The _Cecaelia_ are like that…”  
 “Is that what Mikasa and Ymir are? Their species names?”  
 Eren nodded. He bit his lip, maybe he shouldn’t have led Armin here, not if it was dangerous for him too.  
 “Eren, it’s okay. You did what you thought was best.” Armin did his best to smile, but Eren could see the worry in his eyes.  
 Armin’s voice carried a note of confidence as he continued. “You did what you could to save me. It’s up to me now to get our freedom.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many chapters later, Eren is finally free. Happy? X3 It was hard keeping my mouth shut in the comments about this chapter.


	17. Debts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Armin learns more about Eren's pod.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Early update since I'm travelling. Enjoying all your comments! :D

 Armin hid a smile as Eren backflipped into the water. His scales seemed to soak in the sun and keep its colour in them. No, they had more richness to them than that. Perhaps amber was a better way to describe it. It was the first time Armin was really seeing him in the sun, looking so much more alive than he was held up in the ship. How could he have helped them keep him caged? Armin bit his lip, letting his mind drift to what Eren did. The kiss had surprised him, but the captain coming out at that time scared him more. Especially the threats that followed. He had stayed far away from the _aicaya_ , perhaps to his downfall.  
   
 “He deserves more.”  
 Armin stiffened as he looked over to Mikasa. Most of the pod had introduced themselves while Eren slept. Jean in particular seemed oddly careful in making sure that Eren wouldn’t slip off of the rockface.  
 “I don’t know why he helped me either,” he replied. He tried not to pay attention to her tentacles and how they moved. It made him a little woozy if he thought about it too much.  
 “If you realise that, perhaps you aren’t that bad.”  
 Armin frowned at her. “I thought you were trying to scare me off. Not compliment me.”  
 “I’m trying to understand you and how my _friend_ thought you…”  
 “How I?” Armin prompted.  
 Mikasa turned away. “It doesn’t matter. It would have happened already.”  
 “I don’t understand.”  
 “ _Aicaya_ can impart some of themselves into humans.”  
 “ _Krista_ ,” Mikasa admonished. Krista flinched, but continued to approach Armin. He blinked as she sent a huge wave of water at him.  
 “What was that—?” Armin looked down where she was pointing. An angel fish was swimming a pool of water, nosing the rocks closest to him.  
 “Is that…”  
 “One of the fish I sent to stay with Eren, yes. They only just… finished talking.”  
 Armin flinched. There were many things that he wasn’t too proud of that they might have seen.  
   
 “Why weren’t you ever left alone with him?” Krista asked.  
 “Why does it matter?” Mikasa shot back. She shrunk back a little at Krista’s icy stare. Armin shuddered slightly when it faded back to a normal smile when she looked back at him.  
 “Because… Captain Levi walked in just as he kissed me.” Armin hugged his knees to his chest. Thankfully the sun was out so he wouldn’t freeze. He was still getting used to all the females being naked though.  
 “Why would that make a difference?”  
 “Levi likes Armin,” Eren interrupted before he was blasted back into the water with Mikasa chasing him.  
 Armin would have been concerned if it wasn’t for Eren laughing underwater as he tried to run away.  
 “Armin?”  
 He drew his attention back to Krista. “I… wasn’t really aware if he was. I mean, no one ever touched me on those trips and it was… really strange at first.”  
 “So this Levi protected you?”  
 Armin shrugged. “I don’t know. All I know is that I wasn’t permitted to leave the ship unless I was escorted by one of the senior officers. Most… most sailing masters are captives on pirate vessels though.”  
 “We know. The sirens especially.”  
 “I don’t understand, how can you tell?”  
 Krista smiled at him. “How about you tell me what you know, and I can help you fill in the blanks? Perhaps it’ll help convince Ymir and Mikasa to let you and Eren stay. I owe him that much at least.”  
 “You do?”  
 “If it wasn’t him, it would have been me on your ship.”  
   
 Armin’s throat closed. He didn’t know if any amount of protection would have saved Krista. Her scales were iridescent, changing colours depending on how she flicked her tail. She kept her hair long compared to the rest of the pod, with a look in her eyes that somehow conveyed innocence and pain. She would have been auctioned off early on, no matter what Hanji argued.  
 “I… I see. Are you all normally so protective of each other?”  
 Krista raised a finger and wagged it back and forth. “Nope, your story first and _then_ I’ll answer your questions.”  
   
 Armin smiled sheepishly before detailing what Eren had told him, what he had asked and what he had figured out. Krista was patient, listening while resting her arms on the rock, eyes never deviating from his face.  
 “You know a lot, but not enough to really understand us,” she concluded.  
 Armin stared at her, wondering what else there could be. She smiled cryptically.  
 “Isn’t there one thing you should have noticed? Right when Eren spoke and understood you?”  
   
 Armin stared at her for a few moments, feeling quite silly for not really understanding. He could understand Eren just fine once he spoke. Then it clicked. “You all speak the same language.”  
 Krista smiled slightly. “Right, so what can you guess from that?”  
 “Either it’s innate because of your species, you pick it up from hearing it too much or…” Armin bit his lip.  
 “Or we were all human,” Krista finished. Her tail waved in the air.  
 “Oi, are you sure you should tell him that Krista?”  
 “He would have figured it out.” She brushed Jean’s hand off her shoulder. “There’s actually something further that connects us all, but I don’t expect you to have figured that out yet.”  
   
 “Hey! Shouldn’t we leave that to Eren?” Jean protested.  
 “Mikasa never told Eren, neither did Ymir,” Krista shot back. “He doesn’t even _know_ why we keep him from human settlements.” She turned back to look at Armin. “You’ve noticed Mikasa freaking out around you right?”  
 “Hard to miss,” Armin grumbled.  
 “Hey, at least you _have_ her attention—”  
 “If you want it Jean, you should stop warbling like an out-of-tune albatross,” Krista interrupted smoothly. “What do you know of _aicaya_ folklore?”  
   
 “Nothing,” Armin admitted. “Even for other… merfolk I’ve only heard of the sirens from pirates.”  
 Krista nodded slightly, but it was Jean that spoke up. “ _Aicayas_ tend to be drawn to outcasts. Sorta a ‘hey there’s someone around that gives a—’” He shut his mouth as Krista dunked him underwater.  
 “Forgive Jean’s language,” she murmured. “He gets carried away.”  
 “Levi’s worse,” Armin admitted with a small smile. “It’s actually like watching a dog bark at a tree.”  
 Krista smiled slightly. “It is, isn’t it?”  
 “So you know what a dog is?”  
 “I used to have one, not everyone in the pod would know though. We don’t really share information about our previous lives. It tends to be a bit… touchy. We do share our reason for calling the _aicaya_ though.”  
 “I was newly orphaned.” Jean popped up on the other side of the pool.  
 “I was being chased.” Krista shrank into the water. “By my family.”  
 “I threw myself off a slave boat.” Mikasa had returned and Eren’s head popped up in the pool. Armin’s eyes drifted to him naturally.  
   
 His heart gave a little flutter. Eren’s eyes drifted over him and he could almost see his past in Eren’s eyes. Lost, alone and afraid of everyone around him. He forced his gaze to go back to Krista, she smiled slightly.  
 “I was a sacrifice to the sea,” Eren murmured. Armin’s eyes drifted back to him. “Our village was suffering, there weren’t any fish coming in and as the eldest chief’s son I was chosen to wander into the sea until the god accepted me.” His face fell into a wry smile. “I found something much better though.”  
 They all smiled and giggled amongst each other. Armin smiled; it would be nice to have a family again, even one so unconventional.  
 “We’re really touchy too, I’m sure you noticed with Eren,” Krista pointed out with a smile. “He’s the biggest cuddler in the pod!”  
 “That’s Mikasa!”  
 “You only say that because she has tentacles!” Jean shot back.  
 “So? It gives her an unfair advantage!”  
 Armin burst into laughter, clutching his stomach as he watched them all shoving at each other light-heartedly with smiles on their face. Eren’s still felt hesitant to him, holding back from the others.  
   
 “It’s amazing what you have,” Armin breathed, a smile coming across his face. Eren’s face turned beet red and Jean cackled, elbowing him in the ribs.  
 “The Ai has an ‘ai’”  
 “That wasn’t funny you barnacle-toad!” Eren yelled.  
 “I don’t get it,” Armin admitted.  
 “Mikasa taught everyone a few words from her country,” Krista explained. “Ai is love… I think…”  
 “Something like. When you all don’t mangle it,” Mikasa admitted. Armin’s smile grew.  
 “If you could choose to stay, would you?” Mikasa demanded. Her eyes were harsh as she stared Armin down. He quailed under her gaze.  
 “I…” Armin hesitated.  
 “That’s enough of an answer.” Mikasa’s gaze softened.  
 “Hey! He just needs—”  
 “Time? He’s made his decision!”  
   
 “What?” Armin crumpled in. He wanted to stay, he really did. But the idea that Levi had been protecting him all along was digging at him. Levi, Hanji, Petra… everyone on that ship was just like him. They were all outcasts.  
 “It’s not just you is it?” Eren’s hand brushed against Armin’s cheek hesitantly. “You’re worried about everyone else.”  
 Armin held Eren’s hand, feeling his skin jolt slightly before relaxing. Eren brushed a thumb lightly over Armin’s cheek.  
 “Yes,” he whispered. “There’s just… too much that I need to find out.”  
 He could hear the clicking of tongues in the distance, but Eren’s smile was all that really mattered to him.  
 “Okay, take your time, no matter what happens. I’ll be with you.”  
   
 Armin’s throat closed up and he sniffled, wiping away tears.  
 “Eren,” Mikasa warned.  
 “I’ll be exiled if I have to be, but if it wasn’t for Armin I would be dead now!”  
 Armin shook his head.  
 “It’s true, if it wasn’t for you I’m pretty sure I would have annoyed Levi to the point he’d kill me, or I’d get so sick of being there.”  
 Armin choked out a laugh.  
 “You can survive under the water for a long period of time,” Mikasa advised quietly. “Eren reinforced your lungs to deal with the water pressure. You’ll find you’re holding your breath much longer as well and… if you stay in the water too long you’ll begin to notice other changes. At that point if you want to stay human, you need to get out.”  
 “What do you mean?” Eren asked, befuddled.  
 Mikasa sighed, making Armin giggle a little. Explaining some things to Eren could be tedious.  
 “We were all turned by _aicaya_ , Eren. You’re the only one that’s remained one, what do you _think_ it means?”  
 Eren frowned. “But I don’t actually remember how I turned.”  
 Jean snickered. “Maybe that’s why the two-legger hasn’t changed.”  
 “No. Eren’s still drawn to the humans, making him as much of an outcast to us as he was to them,” Krista broke in quietly.  
   
 The four were dead quiet until Armin broke in.  
 “What does that mean though? Were you all _aicaya_ once?”  
 “I told you!” Krista crowed. “ _I told you!_ ”  
 “Yes now shut up,” Ymir grumbled, draping herself over Krista.  
 “Told what?” Armin was befuddled.  
 “She said you’d figure it out with just a few hints,” Ymir grumbled.  
 “Now you have to help me with the fish!” Krista gave Ymir a light peck on the cheek.  
   
 “So, how do you change into other species?” Armin asked, looking between Krista and Ymir and then Eren and Jean. He wouldn’t have even guessed they were different species until they told him.  
 “It’s slow after we’re _aicaya_ ,” Mikasa admitted. “But there seems to be a… system about it. Krista’s rare, so we can’t exactly pin it down. Those that remain _aicaya_ seem to be outcast in their minds at least. Ymir and I…”  
 “We hate humans,” she supplemented. “ _Hate_. I wish we had gotten you all in that storm.”  
 “ _You_ caused that rock fall?”  
 Ymir grinned. “That was Mikasa getting pissed off actually. She was _so_ angry that you were fast enough to escape the storm.”  
   
 “The _Relentless_ has never been caught,” Armin repeated quietly.  
 “Yeah well, we got it pretty good.”  
 “How did you find me?” Eren asked.  
 Mikasa rolled her eyes. Ymir snorted. Krista was probably laughing underwater. Jean just looked exasperated.  
 “You _sang_ barnacle-head. God only _one_ idiot has a voice like that. Then it was just a matter of catching up and not losing the fucking ship.”  
 “I helped with that!” Krista piped up.  
 Armin smiled, and just listened. She had explained it all to him already.  
   
 Eren glanced at him, a question in his eyes.  
 Armin couldn’t place it and listened to the calming chitter of the pod long into the night. “The stars are bright,” he whispered, mostly to himself.  
 “I know. I sometimes sleep facing up to watch them.”  
 Armin jolted at Eren’s voice. He had thought the other was asleep.  
 “We should go now, if you want to help Levi. There’s another storm coming, I’m not strong enough for that yet… but if it’s getting you back to port I think I can manage it.”  
 “Why?” Armin asked. Eren was back to his family, his friends. Why would he risk it all when it might mean he wouldn’t see them all again?  
 “Because, I owe you just as you owe Levi… This way we can both pay our debts and… if you want to you know you have a home to come back to. But we’d have to go now, while everyone’s sleeping.”  
 Armin stared at him for a few moments before squeezing Eren’s hand.  
 “Okay. Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love the insults in this chapter.


	18. Judgement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Armin returns to land to find out what happened to the crew of the _Relentless_

 Armin’s second time swimming with Eren was different from when he was brought to the rocks. The first time he was clutched so tightly he hadn’t been able to see much of the ocean. Now, he found himself twisting, trying to see even more if he could. Eren swam slowly at first while Armin squirmed in his arms. Eventually, Armin found he couldn’t hold his head up to watch Eren for long and shifted his gaze downward to watch the sea pass under them.  
   
 Eren took many precautions before they left, explaining the dangers of the ocean and how the pod would protect against them. So Armin watched below them and around them as Eren kept his gaze forward and propelled them. Their breaks for air were short, taking only a normal breath in, yet the air seemed to last him so much longer.  
   
 The stars still shone brightly, without a hint of sunlight marring them. It left them plenty of time to get back to port. Armin reaffirmed their direction before letting himself sink back down. Eren enfolded him again, holding him tightly as he held still. His attempts to speed their travel ended up ruining Eren’s rhythm and slowing their speed until Eren asked him to stop.  
   
 Instead, he focused on all the kinds of life that were flowing below him. For some reason it felt so much more majestic when he could (or couldn’t) see into the depths. Everything had its own special technique to go as fast as possible, or would travel in groups to protect themselves. He did wish that he could talk to Eren while they travelled, but Krista had explained that only she was one of the few breeds that could actually speak underwater. He regretted not asking her more about the merpeople before leaving.  
   
 He should have been excited to explore this new world, except they were going too fast for him to really observe much. His heart clenched as Mikasa’s words echoed in his mind. He might not be able to explore the ocean like he thought he would before either if he stayed with them. He had time to figure out what he wanted though. He could talk to Eren; ask him to wait while he cut his last ties to the human world before he made his choice.  
   
 It seemed that as soon as he came to the decision, Eren slowed down as they passed under several boats. Armin drew his gaze from the fish nearby to look for a safe spot for him to emerge. He touched Eren’s arm to get his attention before pointing to the pier. Eren nodded and they slowly approached the shallows. Armin’s head broke the water first, but grasped Eren’s hand as he began to draw away from the shore.  
 “Wait for me? I’ll come back with an answer, I promise!” There was too much fluttering in his stomach, but he knew he had to make the choice. His heart beat a little faster as Eren emerged and smiled, brushing back Armin’s wet hair.  
 “Okay. I’ll wait until next sundown.”  
 The barest hints of light were hitting the horizon, hinting at the new day.  
   
 Armin was glad for it, he was soaked and the wind was setting a chill into his bones. There seemed to be an unusual amount of people flowing towards the centre of the town.  
 “Is something going on?” he asked a nearby person.  
 “There’s an execution of an ex-captain and his crew that went pirate,” he replied gruffly.  
 Armin’s eyes went wide. It wouldn’t be true would it? Most of the treasure would have been unloaded when the _Relentless_ sank. His heart had fallen when he saw the familiar ship on the bottom of the port as he was snatched away. He had hoped they had saved the ship, but after seeing it on the reef his hopes changed to the crew’s survival. He felt conflicted hearing that they were all facing execution.  
 “What about the trial?” he whispered.  
 “Where you come from?” the man demanded. “It was all loud and formal.”  
 “Just fell off a ship in the dock,” Armin lied. The man harrumphed and Armin let himself be pushed along.  
   
 He counted people standing by the gallows, his heart feeling oddly heavy and light at the same time. They were all there. Levi, Hanji, Petra, Auruo, Eld, Gunther… the only one missing from the line up was Mike, standing stiffly behind Erwin.  
   
 Erwin had already started to read out the charges against Levi, the first to be executed as the captain, and with the most heinous crimes. He could only think of one thing that might save them, something that would result in a retrial. If there was a member missing from the trial, Levi would have to testify to their presence. The execution would be postponed until it finished.  
   
 His eyes met the Captain’s for a moment, before they flicked away with a soft smile crossing Levi’s face. Armin felt his heart beat faster. The captain was pretending he wasn’t there. Even now Levi was trying to protect him, to let him live the life he wanted.  
 “ _Captain!_ ” He shoved his way towards the front, his heart felt like it was beating out of his chest. Levi had protected him for so long, without letting him realise it. He needed to do this; he could almost feel his bones vibrating in anticipation.  
   
 The square went silent. He could see Levi gritting his jaw as Erwin’s eyes met his own and a smile crossed his face. Armin didn’t let him speak as he saluted Levi.  
 “Sailing master for the _Relentless_ reporting!”  
 “The sailing master for the _Relentless_ was a captive,” Erwin argued smoothly  
 “I was permitted to walk around towns, does that sound like a captive?” Armin shot back.  
 Erwin straightened a little, his eyes sharpening. “Then why didn’t you wash up on shore?”  
 “I swum further out and was picked up by a vessel.” It was half true. Erwin’s eyes flickered, having some idea of the truth. He turned to the executioner and whispered something. Armin glanced around at the crew, seeing most of them with sad looks. Hanji looked almost devastated compared to her determined look earlier.  
 “My chambers for now, Armin Arlert. The execution has been stayed until this… issue has been sorted.” A smile drifted across Erwin’s face. “There’s no need for a second trial, don’t worry.”  
   
 Armin’s heart sunk, he had been betting on a second trial. He went quietly with the escort of the navy. Erwin was presumably taking care of the execution and dispersing the crowd. He had underestimated him. If he just had more time with Levi he might have had more of an idea about Erwin’s capabilities. Then, he should have known from the man’s rank.  
   
 The office he was thrust in was both too embellished, and horribly plain. Everything behind the desk glittered, but the desk itself and the wall it faced were blank. He wondered where Erwin tended to look.  
 “What brought you back?”  
 Armin jumped as Erwin came back behind him, Levi in cuffs following him.  
 “I want Levi to hear it as well, I never was quite able to break him to command,” Erwin said nonchalantly.  
 Armin swallowed, he could try to barter, or go for the truth. “Good luck.”  
 “Bullshit,” Levi murmured. “You’re a shit liar.”  
 “I have to agree with _Levi_ there Armin, why don’t you try again or I’ll just take Levi back out there?”  
 Armin swallowed and looked away.  
   
 “I want Levi and the crew to be pardoned for past crimes,” he replied stiffly.  
 “You don’t have anything to bargain with.” Erwin’s smile was beginning to irritate him.  
 “What if I said I could sit on the bottom of the ocean for fifteen minutes and still return to land under my own power?”  
 Levi stiffened as Erwin leaned forward.  
 “That’s hardly much. I’m sure you already heard what I wanted from Levi for exemption from his punishment.”  
 Armin could _hear_ Levi gritting his teeth. He lifted his head up higher, trying to still the tremors in his body.  
 “I can’t be your sailing master,” he replied stiffly. “In regards to alternate payment… what if I said I could contact Eren?”  
 “Contact isn’t enough.”  
 “Eren’s attached to me. He won’t submit to you, but he might… _perform_ for certain audiences. In a night you could make up for the lost profits.” Armin hated himself for how he worded it. Levi seemed to be ignoring them both and kept his gaze to the floor.  
   
 “I don’t suppose you’d be willing to let me go with you?” Erwin asked.  
 “Oh, you can come, so long as the Captain and Hanji can as well. You’ll have to stay further back and provide the transportation if he agrees.”  
 “ _If_. I dislike ‘if’s.” Erwin’s eyes blazed.  
 “If he says no we’re back here, but you’ll be out of earshot.”  
   
 It was all that Armin could offer, but the temptation would be too great for Erwin. At least he hoped so.  
 “Oh, and in the time we were gone, Eren regained a large portion of his strength,” he threw out. “He looks much better now.”  
 He had to force himself not to smile as Erwin’s face broke into a thoughtful look. He had Erwin now, it was just a question of whether Eren would help him with this or not.  
   
 “Take Hanji and Levi down to the dock,” he ordered the two soldiers outside. They saluted before both taking Levi. Armin made to follow them, but was stopped by Erwin’s hand on his arm.  
 “Don’t make a fool of me,” he whispered. “I have as much choice as they did.”  
 Armin stared at him as he brushed past to head towards the dock.  
   
 The strange wording bothered him up until they reached the dock. Levi and Hanji were eying him warily as he led the two of them to the very edge of the dock.  
 “What are you doing Arlert?” Levi hissed. “You were fine!”  
 “No I wasn’t,” he retorted, turning to glare at Levi. “ _You_ kept too much to yourself. I could have _enjoyed_ those years on your ship if you weren’t such a hardass about secrets!” He turned to point at Hanji. “You’re just as bad for keeping them!”  
 Hanji smiled sheepishly. “But are you sure Eren’s still around? He was back with his family—”  
 “He offered to bring me here,” Armin broke in. “I… It was killing me not knowing, especially after finding out that the Captain did everything to help protect me.”  
 “Half of it was the irritation’s dog,” Levi grumbled.  
 “Mike,” Hanji translated.  
   
 Armin nodded and froze as he heard a familiar voice.  
 “Armin?”  
 “Eren, I have Levi and Hanji here, it’s just us.” There was a brief moment of silence before Eren hummed acknowledgement.  
 “Hanji and I will die by sunset,” Levi declared, wincing as Armin drove an elbow into his stomach. He wondered what the water did to him; he was far more daring than he would normally have been.  
 “If we don’t help,” Armin added. “But it… it would mean getting out of the water again. I’ll do _anything_ to get you back in.”  
   
 There was a wry laugh under the boards.  
 “Well, I’m already out and… I don’t know if I can really help.”  
 Armin shared a worried glance with Levi and Hanji before he splashed into the water and back out quickly. Sharks were swarming the water. He had gotten enough of a glimpse of Eren though.  
   
 Eren was tucked in, just where the dock ended and was resting on dirt. With blood pooling from him into the water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoy that cliffhanger until next week 8D


	19. Chaos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bittersweet reunions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all had fun with last week's cliffhanger ;) We're starting to get close to the end now!

 Eren had never been happier that the bitey sharks weren’t particularly smart, and loved merfolk flesh. He may be missing several chunks, but so was Jean, _siren_ elect to return the rogue _aicaya_ home. They fought for a while, Jean winning for once, until Jean broke Eren’s nose. Neither of them knew that the bitey sharks nested nearby until Thomas, Jean’s ‘escort’, screamed.  
   
 The three of them scattered away, the sharks taking chunks while they could. Jean and Thomas still had their speed, enough to get away. Eren had never felt so frustrated. He knew that he had to stay close to the dock still, he had promised Armin. He wished the bitey sharks were bigger so that he could just hide in the shallows instead of wedging himself up on land while they took bites out of him.  
   
 His heart jumped out when he heard Armin wade out into the water until he heard him jump right back out.  
 “Eren, what happened?” Armin’s voice drifted down.  
 Eren closed his eyes for a moment before replying in a shaky laugh. “Well, believe it or not, the nasty ass sharks actually helped.”  
   
 “Sharks?” Hanji’s voice drifted over. He frowned and tried to drag himself from under the dock so he could at least see them all. There was the shady Commodore further back as well and he found himself bristling.  
   
 Levi and Hanji looked fine, worn out but healthy. Actually, they both looked a little frantic.  
   
   
 “How can I help?” he asked. Levi looked at him and glanced at Armin before looking to the horizon. Eren tried to ignore the hurt feeling, but Hanji seemed weird too, looking at her feet instead.  
 Levi glanced at Armin, seeing him bite his lip.  
 “Armin tried to pull a Hail Mary over Erwin,” Levi finally answered. Eren’s eyebrows drew together.  
 “A long shot, a chance in hell,” Hanji explained. “ _Sharks_ did that?”  
 “The same kind that you tossed in with Eren.” Levi glanced at her.  
 She raised her hands in defense. “Right, sorry, sorry. Anyways, Armin made an offer to Erwin...”  
 “Oh, okay?” Eren looked around. “If Levi pays him, it’s okay?”  
 “Yeah.” Armin brushed Eren’s hair back.  
   
 “Don’t worry about it,” Levi said gruffly. “You need to take care of yourself first.”  
 “Yeah, I can do that _thanks_. Doesn’t mean I can’t listen.” He glanced at Armin. “I owe that much at least.” He had no idea what was going on, so he should at least learn.  
 “It was the only thing I could think of,” Armin blurted out. “They were going to kill them all.”  
 Eren stared at him. His vision blurred as he glanced at them. “Okay… I… can’t really do much now.” He blinked, trying to bring Armin back into focus.  
 “Eren? _Eren?_ ” He could hear Hanji calling him, but couldn’t quite get his body to cooperate. “We have to get him out of here. Eren, we won’t let them take you.”  
   
 “Who?” he mumbled. He could hear Hanji’s protests as Levi held him close.  
 “Erwin,” Levi muttered by his ear. “Armin offered Erwin you.”  
 Eren clenched Levi’s clothes and felt his breathing quicken.  
 “He didn’t have many options, don’t worry. We’d rather die—”  
 “No, just…” Eren knew he could do something more, something better. Pain was wracking at him though.  
   
 He couldn’t see them anymore, but he could hear them.  
 “Fuck you; he’s useless to you if he’s dead. Hanji’s used to him, he’s used to her. He’ll make himself worse if you just impose yourself on him.”  
 “You’re still in our care, remember that,” Erwin warned.  
 “Oh, so you think that matters?” Levi demanded. Eren inhaled sharply as the grip on him tightened.  
 “Levi! Stop you’re hurting him!”  
 “You’re all idiots,” he mumbled. “Barnacle heads.”  
 Armin let out a hysterical laugh, making Eren smile a little. “He’s losing too much blood. We have to those cuts cleaned and bandaged. Eren, what do you need?”  
 “How would he know?” the Commodore demanded.  
 “ _He’s a healer. Now kindly shut up_ ,” Hanji snapped.  
 “Salt water… seaweed…” Eren forced the words through before drifting off for a moment until he was shaken.  
 “Don’t fall asleep,” Levi ordered.  
 “Yes Captain,” he slurred. There was something else. Something different he had to remember.  
 “Gut some of those sharks,” Eren grumbled. He didn’t need it, but it would make him feel better. Levi seemed to understand because he barked out a laugh.  
   
 “I’ll send Erwin over for that.”  
 Eren gave a weak smile. The air seemed to change and Hanji seemed to be moving with some purpose. He felt some pressure on his tail, jolting until she touched his hand lightly.  
 “I need to bind your wounds Eren.” He couldn’t stop his tail from twitching but he managed to keep it still for the most part.  
   
 “Open your mouth,” Levi ordered. Eren gagged as water poured down his throat. It wasn’t what he had meant by needing salt water.  
 “Wounds,” he coughed out. “Clean wounds.”  
 “Were the ones I—”  
 “Fine, muddy ones,” he mumbled.  
 “Okay, I need to turn you over.”  
 Eren tensed until a hand ran through his hair.  
   
 “I thought you had killed your soft side when your father died,” Erwin commented.  
 “I don’t have to tell you anything. You were the one that killed my soft side if you recall,” Levi snarled.  
 Eren turned his head to look at Levi.  
 “I told you I didn’t know at the time.” Erwin sounded irritated.  
 Eren met Levi’s eyes, seeing the old hurt there. “It’ll be okay.” He reached out to try and touch Levi, console him before he felt his body convulse. It hurt too much.  
   
 It wasn’t the bites. He was familiar with that pain. It was sharp and constant down his tail.  
 He clutched what he was lying on.  
 “He isn’t going to make it,” Erwin’s voice resounded in his head, rattling it around.  
 Why wasn’t anyone saying anything? He could feel a shriek work its way through his throat.  
 “ _Get it now!_ ” Hanji’s voice shattered through his own. “Eren, what stories do you have about land? What happens when you’re on land?”  
   
 Eren swallowed, trying to bury the pain so that he could talk. His hand found Armin’s, squeezing it tightly.  
 “Your tail’s discoloured.” Armin was trying not to cry, he could hear it. “Do you know anything?”  
 “We… fade… Ymir…” He squeezed Armin’s hand harder as he swallowed another scream of pain.  
 “You don’t Eren.” He didn’t know how Armin’s face was so calm when was squeezing so hard.  
 “W-what?” He could barely see past Armin.  
 “Your tail is splitting,” Armin admitted quietly. “That’s what hurts. Hanji’s trying to get you some water.”  
 “Salt, fresh will…” he winced. “Hurt more than this.”  
   
 Armin turned away from him to talk to someone else.  
 He could hear complaints from Erwin and the others with him, and some tinkling sound.  
 “Eren, hold on to me,” Levi’s voice commanded. It was difficult for him to unclench his hand from Armin’s. He hadn’t even realised how tightly he had been grasping Levi’s arm. He grasped the other one as Levi lifted him up. He seemed to strain less than before. His tail felt weird, like there were two things dangling off of it instead of his fin. He gasped as he hit the water, biting his lip to stay quiet.  
   
 The pain slowly faded away and he could see for a moment what Armin meant. He had forgotten what it had been like to transform, and none of them had even realised that they could return to land. Would they even want to though? They were a family, they belonged with each other.  
 “Ymir you crazy fish,” he mumbled.  
 “Who’s Ymir?” Levi demanded. Eren glanced up; he didn’t feel bad talking about Ymir at least this much.  
 “She was the one that almost sunk the _Relentless_ when I was sick.”  
 “Mikasa was responsible for the cliff sliding down,” Armin added quietly. “They’re both sea witches.”  
   
 Erwin laughed, drawing glares from both Hanji and Levi. “Sea witches? There’s no such thing.”  
 “You said the same thing when I told you I could read the waves,” Levi threw out. “Look where that got you.”  
 “Really? Look where it got _you_ , Convict Levi Ackerman.”  
 Eren blinked, that name was familiar for some reason, but he wasn’t sure.  
   
 But he did know that suddenly Levi and Hanji both backed away, and Armin was trembling as he stayed by his side.  
 “What I do know, is that there’s little time until your _friend_ here dies. In that time I plan to get what’s owed me.”  
 Armin clenched the edge of whatever he was in.  
 “I do believe that was our deal, sailing master.”  
 “Give him time! If you take him out now and pass him around he _will_ die. Wouldn’t it be better to have the long term investment for a short wait?” Armin sounded desperate.  
   
 Eren was afraid to break the silence, but he knew he couldn’t escape underwater. If he did, then his wounds would worsen.  
 “You should eat,” Hanji suggested quietly. “All of us. Take that time at least. See how he looks after that.”  
 Eren glanced up at her, but she was staring fixedly at the floor.  
 “Perhaps you’re right.”  
 Eren looked up and saw Erwin leaving, taking the two others with him.  
   
 “They’re staying outside the door,” Levi grumbled. “There’s no way they’d risk Hanji and I leaving. That said…” Levi looked between Eren and Armin. “Why did you come back?”  
 Eren answered before Armin could, “Why are you helping?”  
 An odd smile twisted its way onto Levi’s face. “It’s complicated.”  
   
 Eren gave a half laugh. “I could say the same of us.” He winced as he sat up higher.  
 “Let me finish bandaging those,” Hanji mumbled.  
 “That’s actually what the seaweed was for,” Eren mumbled before looking back at Levi.  
 The silence continued as both Hanji and Armin worked to finish cleaning and bandaging Eren’s cuts. The pain slowly faded away.  
 “You’re looking a bit better,” Armin commented, staring at his tail.  
 “I feel better,” Eren admitted, breaking his gaze away from Levi.  
   
 “Why did you take Armin with you?” Levi asked.  
 Eren turned back to him. Levi’s eyes were concerned and oddly happy for once. “I told you I was protecting him. Just like you were.”  
   
 The three of them stared as Levi’s face broke into a smile and he ducked down. “Here I am trying to save both of you, and you just waltz back in and try to save us all.”  
 “I owe you that much captain. I wanted to see what you were hiding all that time,” Armin declared.  
 “He turned down living in the ocean for that,” Eren admitted.  
 “ _What?_ ” Hanji cried. “You mean, that means…”  
 Eren shrugged. “I don’t really understand it…”  
 “No one actually fully explained it, beyond that Eren’s able to turn humans into _aicaya_.”  
 “The right humans,” Eren corrected, frowning. “It’s… an urge I guess? I don’t really understand it.”  
   
 Armin looked up at Hanji and Eren smiled, knowing what would probably follow.  
 “I learned _so_ much!” Armin said.  
 “ _No!_ You have to tell me! Please Armin, please!” she pleaded. Eren laughed at her reaction, wondering why it was only funny now when before he would have shut down.  
 “It’s because you aren’t bound here,” Levi explained.  
 “What?” Eren looked at him.  
 “You feel different because we aren’t binding you here. It was your choice.”  
   
 Eren stared at Levi, a song in his head. He had an idea for what he could do, what might be possible. He only had to make sure he survived long enough, and that he was interpreting the songs he was hearing right. He let himself drift off to the familiar noise around him. For once, he found comfort in their voices.


	20. Imprisoned

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catching up and a decision is made

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A month until the last chapter before the epilogue. Kinda hard to believe. I hope you're all still enjoying!

 Levi never thought that simply watching someone sleep could be so soothing. Yet, as Eren dozed, he found his hand caressing Eren’s hair and an odd calmness enveloped him. He had hoped that the two escaped, even if the rest of them would suffer. When he found out they were gone it had felt like the right answer to his problem.  
 “Softie,” Hanji whispered.  
 “You’re one to talk. You haven’t asked either of them a single question yet.” Levi saw Armin’s hands twitch slightly from where he was weaving bandages made of the seaweed.  
 “Now’s not the time,” Hanji’s voice sounded so far away.  
   
 Levi glanced back at Eren. Red was beginning to seep out of the cloth they had set around his wounds.  
 “Do you think he’ll be okay out of the water soon? This can’t be helping.” Armin wrung his hands.  
 Hanji shook her head. “I don’t know how long he was out. I’d rather him completely drenched so there’s no chance of him reverting while he’s out.”  
 “The seaweed should help contain the blood and put pressure on as well,” Armin added. “It won’t soak through either.”  
 Levi pushed Eren’s hair back again. “How does he even learn all this?”  
 Armin’s hands stopped working and Levi turned to look at him.  
 “We’ll have time to talk about it when he’s better Levi,” Hanji scolded lightly.  
   
 He sighed and forced his hand away from Eren’s body.  
 “How about you tell me what happened with you?” Armin asked. “I wasn’t really able to ask anything…”  
 Levi glanced at Hanji for a moment and sighed when she gave a small nod before he began.  
 “We saw you go overboard. Petra and Auruo were trying to fix the breeches. Hanji dived in right after you… when she didn’t come up for a while I followed her. The damned Overeager Idiot was just staring into space.”  
 Levi glanced up at her. “Then we saw the damage to the _Relentless_.” He swallowed the lump in his throat. The ship had been his home for so many years now. She had been _their_ home.  
   
 “I’ll make them build you a new one.”  
 Levi jumped as Eren’s head lolled around to look at him, his eyes a faded green and half-lidded.  
 “You should rest if you can still,” Hanji advised, taking one of Eren’s hands.  
 He shook his head and tried to sit up in the bathtub, failing as he slid back.  
 “Keep going,” Eren said.  
   
 Levi took a breath and fiddled with the side of the tub.  
 “Six holes, all around the bottom and the rudder was ripped off.” Levi swallowed around the block in his throat. Once they saw the damage, he and Hanji had swum up to get Petra and Auruo out. The holes were too large to block them all in time.  
 “She sunk.”  
   
 Eren touched Levi’s hand lightly, causing him to jolt slightly.  
 “I’m sorry.”  
 Levi snorted. “Why?”  
 “Because even if it was a prison for me, it was your home. You belonged there, now you don’t.” Eren slipped a little more into the water, gripping Levi’s hand tightly to stay up.  
 “Move your tail up Eren,” Armin advised. “I’ll start changing some of the bandages.”  
 Eren winced as he shifted and the fin flopped over the basin edge.  
   
 “Continue please?” Eren urged.  
 Levi glanced at him, tempted to refuse, but there was an odd desperation in Eren’s eyes.  
 “Okay.” Levi licked his lips, wondering how he could really explain the trial.  
 “Somehow everyone made it off fine, no one had been trapped.” Levi let himself smile at that. “When I found out you two were gone, I was happy. But we weren’t able to make it out of town in time.” Levi took a moment to compose himself. He couldn’t clench his hands. Eren’s hand had made it into his own somehow.  
   
 “The navy caught us stranded. Erwin took over our case pretty fast.” Levi scowled. Erwin had been nice enough at first, until he found out that both Eren and Armin had escaped. Then he started to lose his temper.  
 “The first few days of the ‘trial’ were him trying to find out where you two were. If we had helped you escape, if I had,” Levi paused to find the right words. “ _Proper_ respect for everything he’s done.”  
 Hanji snorted. “That’s putting it nicely. Whipping you until your back was raw; like it would do anything, you steam tank.”  
 “Says the one that just laughed maniacally listing off body parts,” Levi grumbled. He tried not to think about the lashes too much or his skin started to sting.  
   
 “How do you do that?” Armin was staring at him, eyes wide.  
 Levi rolled his eyes. “Erwin is better at stripping off skin than pain. He had to stop earlier than normal, the _dumb shit_.” He purposefully raised his voice so the lubbers outside could hear him.  
 Eren’s chest vibrated with laughter.  
 “I’m glad I can amuse you.” Levi rolled his eyes.  
 “It’s not funny.” Armin frowned.  
 “It’s just _how_ he said it Armin.” Eren’s brows furrowed and he reached out to Armin. “Armin…”  
 Levi had to pry Eren’s lip out of his teeth.  
 “Just that the people outside were talking about it.”  
 “You could _hear_ them?” Hanji asked.  
 Levi hid a smile as Eren looked at them all bemused, like it was odd to not have his exceptional hearing.  
 “Human senses aren’t so clear if you can remember,” Armin noted.  
   
 Levi stared at them both for a moment before noticing Eren’s glassy-eyed look. He was missing something between the two of them.  
 “I don’t remember much,” Eren said. “I’d rather forget most of what I do remember.”  
 “Wait,” Levi interrupted. “You were human?”  
 Eren half shrugged and shifted to get more comfortable as Armin continued to change his bandages. “We all were.”  
 “It’s… deeper than that actually.” Armin hesitated, glancing at Eren for a moment before staring at his hands again. Levi redirected his gaze to Eren, who suddenly seemed really fixated on their interlocked hands.  
   
 “What made you turn?” Hanji broke the silence. “Not the action, but there was probably something…”  
 “Mentally,” Eren finished. There was a moment of silence as Eren and Armin tried to move around so that he could reach some of the more difficult bandages.  
   
 “Who were you before?” Levi broke the silence as Eren settled back in.  
 “My dad was the clan chief. We lived by the sea and … it was a chaotic time.”  
 Levi brushed Eren’s hand with his thumb. He could see flicker of pain across his face.  
 “We were under attack a lot. I was training to be a warrior when I really wanted to be one of the shamans. We trusted the sea to protect us as we tried to protect it.”  
   
 Levi hesitated a moment before he reached out to caress Eren’s cheek. “You don’t have to tell us.”  
 Eren shook his head. “It helps to pass the time.” He smiled slightly. “But God I’m tired of being in a tank so much.”  
 “You got most of your strength back,” Armin argued.  
 “Except I never even beat _Jean_. That _siren_ couldn’t seduce anyone for the _life_ of him. I rarely lost a race to him and I lost _every one_.”  
 “You weren’t able to swim for a long time, I think that it’s alright for him to win a few,” Levi commented.  
   
 Eren ducked his head and smiled slightly. “I guess that’s right. Where was I?”  
 “You protected the sea, and the sea would protect you,” Hanji interjected.  
 Eren nodded. “Right, but there was a year that several bad storms hit the village. The shamans said… a tidal wave would come if we couldn’t calm the spirits of the sea.” Eren turned away and Levi’s heart fell. He suddenly felt like he shouldn’t be hearing any of this. It felt far too personal of a question to have asked.  
 “It wasn’t like I had many friends,” Eren’s tone was forcibly light. “We wanted to make sure that the spirits wouldn’t be offended. I only really… had my father. No friends and it would be the only time I could actually go to the ocean on my own without six people trying to pull me back into weapons training.”  
   
 Levi did smile as Eren rolled his eyes.  
 “So I volunteered.”  
 Armin’s hand tightened around Eren’s. Levi had noticed his silence, wondering if Armin had heard it all already.  
 “It was… just quiet for once. Just the waves, the crackle of thunder in the distance and the chill settling in my skin.”  
   
 Levi felt like he was there, that the rain was pelting at his skin, settling there. That the water slowly began to feel more like home than anything else. He blinked and lost the feeling, and saw all three of them looking at him quizzically.  
 “What?”  
 “It’s nothing,” Eren answered quickly. “At least I hope so…”  
   
 “Your eyes got a little strange that’s all,” Armin reassured. Levi stared at them both until Eren slowly touched their foreheads together.  
 “It’s fine,” Eren reassured. Levi felt an odd calm settle in him before he backed away frowning.  
 “What did you just try to do?” Levi demanded. Eren’s stare seemed a little more piercing, glowing almost. Then they faced back to their normal colour as he settled back in his tank.  
 “Calm you down,” Eren said.  
 “You can do that?” Armin asked.  
 Eren shrugged with one shoulder. “I just thought I should.” Eren’s eyes flicked to Levi’s own before glancing back at Armin. “A lot of our… ‘abilities’ are instinctual.”  
 “So all _aicaya_ are healers?” Armin asked.  
 Eren shook his head, giving a wry smile. “It’s like what Mikasa said. I’m an outcast even in the pod. I’m still too drawn to land.”  
   
 Levi laughed and couldn’t stop. Now he understood why Eren had listened so patiently to his own story. Levi had been part of something wonderful that went sour. He didn’t really belong anywhere, neither did his crew. Those that did typically stayed behind at the villages they stopped at. He hadn’t belonged to the ship, but the people around him had made his life feel more like home.  
   
 “It’s okay, it’s okay.” Eren’s voice soothed him and he felt warm arms around him. He hadn’t noticed the tears pouring down his face until his face was in Armin’s shoulder. His hand was still in Eren’s and he let it slowly slip out.  
 “You must think I’m pathetic,” Levi said hoarsely.  
 “No,” Armin’s voice sounded so strong. He wondered if that had always been the case, if Armin had always been so strong behind his hesitance.  
 “You’ve just had to be strong for so long. If you weren’t, I wouldn’t have survived.”  
 “Your parents would be alive though.” It was on Levi’s list of regrets. That Armin couldn’t ever care for someone that had killed his parents.  
 “No, you never kill people that don’t fight. You warned them.”  
 Levi could hear the small hiccups in Armin’s chest.  
 “You care for everyone. I didn’t see how much for a long time though. I didn’t want to see it.” Armin gave a little laugh. “Eren really changed things for all of us.”  
   
 Levi pulled away from Armin slowly to look between the two of them, barely seeing Hanji in the corner pretending to not pay attention. He would have to thank her later somehow. If they had a later.  
 “If I did all that much, do you think you can lift me out of here? It was really more comfortable before. There isn’t enough water in here,” Eren grumbled.  
   
 Levi smiled and leaned down, placing one arm in the water and his shoulder next to Eren’s.  
 “Put your arm around my shoulders,” he ordered. “You’ll also let us know the moment you feel any pain.”  
 “Yes, _Captain_.” Eren rolled his eyes and Armin snickered. Levi was tempted to just toss him onto the bed, before reminding himself of Eren’s injuries. No sooner than he lifted Eren out of the tub and onto the bed then there was the click of a key. He could hear Hanji stand up in the corner.  
 He straightened and faced the door as the handle turned. It was time to deal with his past and Erwin. He wouldn’t let any of them pay his price.


	21. Relentless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A deal is made for the release of the _Relentless_ ' crew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I uh... may have almost forgotten to upload this and went through the beta notes really fast 

Eren could feel his pulse hammering in his fingertips. He was glad that there was more space for him to move on the bed; what worried him though was how Levi lay in wait in front of the door, coiled like an octopus. It felt like he would go far away again, just when Eren had managed to reel him in so close.  
   
 He glanced at Armin, but couldn’t catch his eye. He didn’t want to say anything, not when someone was coming. It was probably Commodore-whatever. He found he was slowly getting more irritated at Commo-whatever. He wanted to rip him to pieces, maybe feed him to Jean. No, he didn’t deserve the lust Jean would invoke in him before eating him. He wanted to hurt him like he had hurt Levi so many times.  
   
 It was easier for Eren to see Erwin now that he was higher off the ground. He didn’t have crane his neck to look into his eyes.  
 “So, he’s awake now,” Erwin commented. “How are you feeling Eren?”  
 Eren opened his mouth to answer but Levi spoke faster. “Like you give a shit about his wellbeing.”  
 Eren was glad Erwin shifted his gaze so he didn’t have to face the man’s piercing eyes. He wasn’t sure how Levi was able to be so defiant when those eyes commanded respect.  
 “You can’t pull that on me easily,” Levi snarled.  
 “No,” Erwin admitted. “But I thought you would appreciate the warning. _My_ deadline is coming up. Either you’re back on the execution block, or Eren begins taking customers.”  
   
 Eren felt his mouth dry. Levi had explained enough so that he had an idea of what Erwin meant.  
 “I don’t think Eren can take customers the way you’re thinking,” Armin broke in smoothly. “They aren’t sexual beings.”  
 Erwin’s chuckle sent shivers down Eren’s spine. “It wouldn’t matter.”  
 He definitely didn’t like that look in Erwin’s eyes.  
 Once again, Levi spoke before Eren could even open his mouth. “I could please them far better than he could.”  
 “Oh, but it isn’t about that.” Erwin’s voice became silky smooth. Eren found himself wondering if Erwin might have been a siren if he was ever changed.  
   
 “Why not something on _my_ terms?” Eren demanded. Everyone turned to look at him. Levi looked like he thought Eren was making a huge mistake, but Eren couldn’t let Levi lose what he had managed to regain.  
   
 Erwin straightened and pushed Levi to the side. Eren found himself stiffening as Erwin drew closer.  
 “What terms might _those_ be?” Erwin demanded. Those were definitely siren eyes. Eren found himself scowling more out of habit than anything. Perhaps his feud with Jean would actually result in some good.  
   
 “For starters how about you back _away?_ ”  
 Erwin had an odd twinkle in his eye as he took a step back. Eren glared at him and gestured Levi to come back closer. His posture seemed to relax ever so slightly after he stared at Eren.  
 “First, the entire crew of the _Relentless_ will be pardoned and freed.”  
 Erwin had a slight tilt to his head and a feral smile crossed his face. “A judge is among those interested, you’ll be able to convince him yourself.”  
 Eren glared at Erwin. “Then you can tell him that’s my price. Second—”  
 Erwin raised a hand and Eren glowered at him. “How many terms will there be?”  
 Eren thought for a moment. “Three.”  
 Erwin nodded.  
 “I won’t be… taking _customers_ as you say it.” He grinned at Erwin’s face. He would take great pleasure in knocking him down a peg or two. He knew he could. He could hear the song scraping at his bones.  
 “What I will do for those… people you have interested, is put on a little show for them. Those other services they can get elsewhere.” Eren let his own feral smile pass his lips. “If you force me, that’s all they’ll have. Something they could get better somewhere else. With the show, they’ll experience something that only someone like me can give.”  
   
 Levi squeezed his shoulder. Eren thought that he was warning him about something, but he didn’t know what. Armin looked just as worried.  
 Erwin only straightened with that same grin on his face. “That will be fine. Tomorrow night, they will expect a show of the _utmost_ quality.”  
 Erwin grasped Eren’s chin, making him jolt at the invasion. Suddenly the touch was gone and Erwin had been thrown across the room.  
   
 Levi stood aggressively between the two of them. “You know better than to _touch merchandise_ , don’t you?” he asked sarcastically. Erwin chuckled strode back over and caressed Levi’s cheek. Eren cringed at the display.  
 “That’s right. You never did such a thing did you?”  
 Eren was pretty sure Levi’s eyes had that terrifying glint in them when he replied. “No, that was Armin.”  
 Eren saw Armin stiffen slightly and forcefully relaxing to stare down the Commodore.  
 The corner of Erwin’s mouth twitched slightly.  
   
 “Well then, I shouldn’t ask Eren to do such a show alone should I?”  
 Eren felt like crabs were scuttling across his skin.  
 “Why don’t we have Armin there, Levi as well? I can’t really take my eye off of the largest problem on the sea now could I?”  
 “Fine,” Eren answered tersely.  
 The slimy smile came back across Erwin’s face as he held out a hand.  
 “Then we’re agreed.”  
 Eren hesitated before holding out his own hand and barely touching Erwin’s until it was grasped and shaken.  
   
 They all watched him warily as the door closed behind him, locking behind him.  
 “Oh Eren,” Hanji breathed. “What did you do?”  
 Eren grimaced and wiped his hand on the sheet. “I don’t like him.”  
 “ _Really?_ ” Levi asked sarcastically. “Then why would you agree to that irritation?”  
 “Because, you don’t deserve to go through all of that to keep your freedom. All of you.” Eren looked up at Levi, feeling more than seeing the man jolt back.  
   
 The song in his head was building, with only one point of clarity. He was fairly certain that Levi wouldn’t agree with what he was doing, so he just yanked him down. It wasn’t as difficult to breathe into Levi’s mouth as with Armin, but Levi looked bemused as Eren let go before pulling Eren back and held their lips together for a moment longer.  
   
 He blinked as Levi finally backed away. “What…”  
 “I could ask the same thing,” Levi shot back smoothly. Armin looked like he was hiding a smile and Hanji seemed like she was just about to explode.  
 “If you’re with me tomorrow, you need some form of protection,” Eren argued.  
 “And I told you what kissing meant in human terms.” Levi raised an eyebrow. “Or are you saying you feel absolutely nothing?”  
   
 Eren was flummoxed. “I… I don’t understand.”  
 They all turned when Armin giggled. “You can be such an idiot, Captain. How old were you when you were sacrificed, Eren?”  
 He had to think about that for a while. “Between eight and ten summers…”  
 Armin raised his eyebrows and smiled at Levi, who was suddenly draped over the soft sheets.  
 “How about I show you Eren?”  
   
 He didn’t understand what Armin was trying to prove until Armin’s lips pressed against his own gently and he inhaled in shock. His chest fluttered as Armin drew away with a smile, leaving him feeling oddly empty.  
 “Do you get it now?”  
 “I… I think so?” Eren glanced at Levi. He was fairly certain Armin was talking about that odd fluttery feeling. “I do feel it with both of you,” he mumbled. “Even though Captain was such a bastard.”  
   
 Eren flinched as a high pitched sound came from Hanji.  
 “You’re all just so—”  
 “Finish it and I’ll throw you to the sharks,” Levi snapped. The others broke out into smiles.  
 “But really,” Hanji composed herself. “What was that about?”  
 “Protection,” Eren explained. “If they’re with me… it’ll help.”  
 “But _how?_ ”  
 Eren gave a hesitant smile before shrugging. “Like I said… a lot of it is instinctual. I only know it will help.”  
 Hanji sighed and flopped back onto the floor. “I won’t even get to _watch. Whyyyy?_ ”  
 “Maybe if you ask nicely one of his siren-friends will seduce you into the water,” Levi grumbled.  
   
 Eren flinched, clenching the sheets.  
 “Eren?” Armin looked at him, his hand hovering over Eren’s own. “What’s wrong?”  
 “I… don’t think they’ll appreciate me coming back,” he whispered.  
 A heavy weight settled in the room. Eren jumped as Levi grabbed his chin to look at him.  
 “What happened?” Levi growled.  
 Eren closed his eyes, looking out the corner at Armin.  
 “You got in trouble because of me didn’t you?” Armin breathed.  
 Eren looked down.  
 “What do you mean?” Levi demanded.  
 “Eren, can you still go home?” Hanji leaned on the bed. Eren felt himself slowly shrivel up inside. Home, he had left one home for another and then abandoned them.  
 “No,” he whispered. He blinked back tears as he was drawn into a group hug. He never imagined that this would have happened.  
   
 He took in a few deep breaths, breathing in each of their scents.  
 “They found me at dawn. I wanted to wait for you Armin, I asked them to… J—They tried to bring me back forcibly.” Eren gave a weak smile. “The blood is what got the shark’s attention. The pack chased them away.”  
 “Well at least you had the brains to hide where you did,” Levi sighed. “You’re welcome to stay with us as long as you like. Provided that we all survive.”  
 “You will,” Eren replied strongly. “I just… haven’t figured out all of it.” Eren winced as the song built in his head.  
   
 “Why don’t you rest?” Hanji suggested. “If you start to dry out then we’ll put you back in the water. Let us figure some of it out okay?”  
 “What are you going to do Eren?” Armin asked quickly as Eren felt himself slowly drifting to sleep. “So that we can prepare.”  
 “Sing,” he mumbled. “Hurts in the bones. Share all our pain…” He could hear the worried whispers as his body settled into a peaceful rest, with his bones still humming the desire to hurt those threatening the people he wanted to protect so badly.


	22. Performance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Out of the frying pan and into the fire

 Eren felt oddly warm as he drifted awake. He had a hard time placing the source. It was warmer and more direct than the sun hitting his body or water surrounding him. He blinked to try and clear his eyes. He was back in the tub with Levi holding him up on one side and Hanji on the other. Armin was draped over Eren, his chin resting on Eren’s shoulder.  
   
 He couldn’t hold back his smile; there were people around him. People that cared and wanted to give him a home. He shifted slightly to get more comfortable and continue basking in their warmth. He paused when Levi began to stir.  
 “Good morning,” Eren murmured. He hesitated a moment before planting a kiss on Levi’s forehead.  
 Levi’s eye half opened before closing. “Isn’t,” Levi mumbled. Armin twitched slightly, making Eren smile a little. He had watched Levi sleep before, but Armin’s sleeping habits were new.  
   
 When he looked back Levi’s head was tilted up to look at him. “How are you feeling?”  
 Eren frowned. “Fine, why?”  
 Levi yawned and stretched out. “You were tossing most of the night. Is that normal?”  
 Eren flicked his tail up thoughtfully. “No, we’re normally pretty still when we sleep. Our tails might twitch to help stay warm but it’s unusual to have a restless sleep.”  
   
 “Is something bothering you?” Levi’s voice was quiet as he carded a hand through Eren’s hair. Eren started to shake his head, but stopped partway. It might be the song that had been itching at him. It was still there but it felt like a familiar burn.  
 “It’s just… something clawing its way out of me.” He gave a wry smile. “That’s why I wanted to make sure you were protected.”  
 “So you’re safe from each other’s songs?” Hanji’s voice had Eren and Levi jump. Miraculously, Armin continued to doze on Eren’s shoulder.  
 “Not entirely…” Eren trailed off. The day he had been taken he had lulled Jean to sleep. But he knew that kissing Levi would protect him. He groaned and leaned forward, jolting as Armin’s head slipped into the water.  
 “Barnacles,” Eren swore.  
 Hanji laughed as Levi rolled his eyes and drew Armin out of the water.  
 “He can sleep like a rock,” Levi grumbled.  
   
 “I’m worried about the crew,” Eren murmured. “I don’t know how to make sure they get out safely after… and I—”  
 Hanji had placed her hand over Eren’s mouth. “Leave the crew and ship to me. We’re pirates for a reason. If you say that Erwin won’t bother us again; there’s no reason to hold back.” A feral grin took over her face. “We’ll take what we’re owed.”  
 “What do you mean?”  
 Eren was glad he wasn’t on the other end of Levi’s intense glare.  
 “I mean that Erwin’s trying to cover _his_ ass and using us to do it,” Hanji said.  
 “How the fuck do you know that?”  
 “Because I have ears and Armin has a head for numbers.”  
 “Erwin’s had too many repairs that are too costly lately.” Armin leaned up and rubbed his eyes. “The numbers don’t make any sense.”  
   
 Hanji nodded fervently. “Besides, they won’t leave many here to guard me. I’ll be able to manage on my own! How did you think I found you?”  
 Eren laughed at Levi’s slack-jawed expression.  
 “ _Really?_ You didn’t figure that out?” Hanji pouted and turned her back to them.  
   
 “Hanji,” Eren broke in quietly. He couldn’t guarantee that she would still be around, and he wouldn’t risk the pod’s safety without her permission. But she was doing more to help them than normal, so there wouldn’t be anything else for him to offer as thanks. “If you come back here when the seas begin to freeze… I’ll try to be here. I can’t say if anyone else will but…”  
 Hanji turned to look at him, a gentle smile on her face. “Thank you for that offer Eren. But I think that would put you at too much risk.” She tapped a finger against her chin. “I would still love that offer, but the place just isn’t feasible… Would there be a way to mark a good meeting place…? Finding you by song might get confusing with other pods.” She began to pace around the room. Finally she clapped her hands. “Armin!”  
 “Y-yes?” Armin jumped to attention. Eren glanced between the two of them.  
 “How many inlets are there up the coast that aren’t visible by sea?”  
 Eren glanced over at Armin and smiled at the blond’s thoughtful look. It was a new sight; it had been difficult for him to see Armin at work, since he was up the stairs when Eren was stuck below them.  
 “Three.”  
 Hanji nodded. “Two leagues in the middle inlet. I’ll meet you there and make sure that it’s empty.”  
 Eren smiled and nodded. “I’ll do my best.”  
 “You’ll have me to show you where it is.” Armin’s voice was so quiet that he could barely hear it. Eren held his breath, staring at Armin.  
   
 “After all, you don’t have your pod anymore. There’s so much I still want to learn and—”  
 Eren kissed Armin lightly, enjoying the red flush over his cheeks. Perhaps he could learn to like this ‘kissing’ thing. “You don’t have to explain yourself Armin, and I’m fine on my own too. I’d rather you choose for you, rather than because of me.”  
 Armin nodded and grasped Eren’s hand. “I want to. Levi can come if he wants too right?”  
 Eren looked over just in time to see Levi’s startled face before it was wiped blank.  
 “There’s no reason he can’t.” The words fell from Eren’s lips and just felt right. At the back of his head he had a feeling that Mikasa would strangle him for inviting Levi to see the pod. Except those instincts also told him that Levi might actually belong with them.  
   
 “Now we just have to make sure the pod doesn’t kill you,” Armin muttered. Eren opened his mouth to say something, but stopped when he heard the lock click. His attention went to the door as the handle turned slowly.  
 “Oh.” Erwin strode into the room. “Good you’re all awake.”  
 Eren bristled and his bones hummed even louder.  
 “They’re ready, there’s a basin ready for you there.” Erwin’s gaze made Eren feel like he was being hunted.  
   
 He bristled even more as Erwin smiled at him. “Levi, why don’t you take him along? He should serve well to hamper your fighting abilities.”  
 “Nice way of saying I can’t carry you,” Armin muttered. Levi snorted as he offered his hand to Eren.  
 Eren barely hesitated before grabbing it and letting himself be swung into Levi’s arms. He cringed as Erwin’s eyes roved over his body before he led the way out of the room.  
   
 He had expected to see more people on their way, but it was oddly quiet between the houses. He kept twisting to look around. He had seen some of the structures from far away before, but never so close.  
 “Stop squirming,” Levi muttered. “You’re heavy enough as is.”  
 “There’s so much!”  
 Armin ducked his head, causing Eren to frown. “What?”  
 “No, just it’s been a while since I’ve been in a city too,” Armin whispered.  
 “It doesn’t have to be,” Erwin said. Eren and Armin flinched, and Levi’s grip tightened. Erwin paused.  
   
 Eren tried to peer around him to see what was happening. He jumped and clung to Levi when the wall swung in.  
 “What?” Levi asked irritably.  
 “The wall opened!” Eren frowned as Armin started to laugh at him.  
 “It’s a door, didn’t you have any?” Levi sighed.  
 “Not like that!” Eren frowned.  
  Erwin turned to look at them. “What do you mean?”  
 “Nothing,” the three of them chorused. Eren shuddered thinking of what might happen if they knew he had been human before, not that he really remembered much of it any more.  
   
 That and he hadn’t told Armin and Levi just how long ago that had been. The years passed oddly when you barely aged. He flinched as they moved forward and the song vibrated his bones that much harder.  
 “Eren?” Levi breathed. “What’s wrong?”  
 “He’s shaking,” Armin whispered. “Eren…”  
 He gave his best smile at them. “I’m okay. I’ll be fine, even better when I know… when we’re all free.”  
 The vibrations slowed slightly when Armin and Levi smiled at him. They were worth it.  
   
 Erwin held the curtain open, waiting for them to pass through. Eren could see the tank ahead.  
 “They’re good to go.”  
 “I’d hope so.” Eren mumbled. “I’m ready to burst.”  
 Erwin looked a little confused, but Levi moved with certainty and let Eren lower himself slowly into the tank. He flinched at the cold water. That and there wasn’t any salt in it. He could feel his skin getting itchy already. There were so many people and there was barely a moment where he wondered if he really could do this before the song hummed again, and this time he let it come out.  
   
 He remembered Levi’s story of his past, his hopes and despair, how Armin’s desire to see the ocean turned black with loss. He recalled his own desires to see the ocean as a child that only happened when the waves took him under. The storms that raged around them, the screams of the slaves on their ships. The desperation of Levi’s crew, their desire for their home ruined because of a man’s desire for wealth.  
   
 The song left him exhausted, slumped over the edge of the tank. He was too tired to open his eyes, without enough energy to check and make sure that Levi and Armin were safe.  
 “God, Eren.” Levi’s voice crackled and sounded faint. Had he hurt Levi? Was Armin safe? He only managed to let out a groan.  
 “He’s fine, God. _What_ was that?” Levi’s voice broke. Eren fought to open one of his eyes to try and reassure Levi, but failed. He only barely managed to shake his head.  
 “We have to get you somewhere safe.”  
 “At least they won’t be waking up for a while,” Armin said. He sounded fine, but Eren really wished that he could see for himself.  
 “Levi freaked out a little partway Eren, but we’re both fine,” Armin soothed.  
   
 Eren let out a sigh of relief. He really didn’t want to hurt either of them. He never sang a song like that before, and he hoped he wouldn’t have to ever again. It hurt; he could feel the rawness in his throat.  
 “Is there any way we can help?” Levi muttered.  
 “Let me try something…”  
 Eren felt lips pressed to his own and opened naturally as he breathed in.  
 He slowly opened his eyes and pulled away gently.  
 “How…?”  
 “A guess, instinct I guess,” Armin laughed. “Levi’s going to have to carry you out though. We should be safe in the water for a while right Eren?”  
 He gave a small nod and smiled.  
   
 He took the time that Levi spent picking him up to observe them both. Armin just looked a little frazzled, but almost glowed. Levi seemed nervous and there was smeared blood under his nose.  
   
 Then Eren got a look at the room and held onto Levi even tighter. Blood covered the faces of everyone. Some had more, others had less but no one was moving. He managed to find Erwin in the mass of red. He had blood dripping from his eyes, and Eren briefly wondered if the man would ever see again before deciding that he deserved it. If he was anywhere near as kind as he pretended, he wouldn’t have turned away from Levi’s problems.  
   
 The curtain closed, hiding the sight from him.  
 “Whoever attacked you would be gone right?” Armin asked worriedly. Eren gave a small nod. Jean wouldn’t have come back without back up, and the pod wasn’t close enough. Besides, since he was missing would probably mean the pod would leave, assuming that he had been captured again. Or dead, both were likely conclusions.  
   
 “Eren…” There had been the sound of rock under Levi’s feet until that moment. Eren blinked, realising he must have fallen asleep at some point. They were in the water now, not too far in though.  
 “Who is that?”  
 Eren twisted to look and froze at the familiar figure hovering above the water’s surface. They were in more trouble than he thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last cliffhanger, promise.


	23. Last Chance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Consequences, and hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I hate to mention this, but the last two chapters may be delayed. Family issues came up and I'll be helping out in the meanwhile. Their wifi is spotty if I recall so they may not be posted until I return home.

 Eren swallowed as Levi drew him closer. “Mikasa.”  
 He saw Armin sliding behind Levi, as if it would hide him from her wrath. Her eyes flicked to each of them before her gaze softened slightly. “Another one, Eren?”  
 He stiffened and hid in Levi’s neck, as if it would hide him from her.  
 “You’re both cowards,” Levi grumbled and then dove into the water.  
 Eren gasped reflexively, coughing and forcing himself back up to breathe.  
 Mikasa had a smile on when he managed to breathe properly again. “You still can’t deal with surprises very well can you?”  
 Eren glowered at Levi who was treading water a short distance away, and Armin was still standing, calf-deep in the water.  
   
 “Perhaps we were harsh,” she admitted. “I thought you were being taken advantage of.” Her eyes weren’t on him, but Levi and Armin. “But it seems that wasn’t the case. Have you two chosen?”  
 “I’m staying with him,” Armin admitted quietly. “I… wanted—”  
 “I don’t need explanations,” Mikasa cut him off. Eren flinched as her gaze shifted to Levi. “And you?”  
 “I’m staying with them.”  
 She gave a sharp nod and disappeared below the water. Eren had, of course, forgotten to check if there was anyone else from the pod here when he was dunked.  
 Mikasa had an odd smile on her face.  
 “I left to pick up two renegades and I’m going back with four. Eren, you’re swimming at full strength. I’ll take the one that’s used to us.”  
 Armin strode nervously towards Mikasa, while Levi crossed his arms and stared down Jean.  
   
 Eren had to admit that Jean had probably seen better days. He had far fewer bites than Eren, but there were still chunks missing out of his tail.  
 Eren still felt so tired from the song, and he wondered if Mikasa had somehow noticed. His speed might be just on par with Mikasa and Jean when they were weighed down with passengers.  
 Jean’s smile freaked him out just a little when he took a firm hold on Levi. “Take a deep breath lubber.”  
 Eren shot Jean a look before taking a large breath and diving under. The sharks were still milling around; and, as soon as Eren saw blood continuing to flow from Levi’s face, he panicked.  
   
 It took Mikasa shoving him to realise that Jean was still out-swimming them. In fact, if he didn’t start he would be chow instead. He flicked his tail, his rhythm was off enough that Jean and Mikasa turned to check on him every now and then. He had never expended so much energy on a song before. He blinked, shaking his head slightly before turning his attention back to his surroundings. Letting his guard down while they were travelling was dangerous, especially when he was holding them back.  
   
 They broke for air sooner than he expected. Levi, unused to the movements took in a few large gulps of water and still seemed a little panicked.  
 “Hey, what’s up with you?” Jean glared at Eren.  
 “Back off,” Levi snarled.  
 Jean covered Levi’s mouth. “You weren’t swimming like that when you left. What happened?”  
 Armin popped up. Eren supposed that Mikasa was watching their tails.  
 “He sang an odd song… It was…”  
 “Disturbing.” Levi shoved Jean’s hand off of him. Armin nodded and Eren only shrugged as Jean looked at him. It had been instinctual, pretty much everything he did was.  
 “I’m getting Mikasa. If you aren’t swimming at full speed we’re going to run into trouble.” Jean dove back in, letting Mikasa come back up for air.  
 “What’s wrong? Jean wanted me to talk to you?”  
 Armin gave a small shrug. “He wanted to know why Eren wasn’t swimming at full speed. He sang recently… something disturbing.”  
 Mikasa’s face fell and she grabbed Eren’s face. He stared into her eyes, feeling like she was digging for something.  
   
 “No wonder you’re so off,” she murmured. “I’ll do what I can.”  
 Eren blinked, wondering what she could possibly do.  
 “We should get going again.” She grabbed Armin and slipped under again. Levi rolled his eyes and took a breath before letting himself slip back under. Eren dove back with them. He still didn’t like how Jean treated Levi. Mikasa was at least civil to Armin, more than the last time they had talked.  
   
 Actually Levi was being oddly still now, but their pace was about the same. Eren found that he wasn’t fighting the current as much as before. He glanced at Mikasa, wondering what she had done so that he could regain his normal rhythm. Jean seemed upset, but Eren couldn’t really tell about what. Their further breaks were only brief. Armin got the trick of breathing as they rose, but Levi took a little longer and seemed to be struggling. Something was wrong, but they couldn’t stop.  
   
 A line of bubbles flew in front of him.  
  _‘Almost there. Push further and we’ll check.’_  
 Eren gave a sharp nod and tried to go faster. He failed initially, until he managed to move his body just right and it recalled the movements. He smiled at his burst of speed. He could feel the difference in the water now, they were almost there. Home. His heart burst and he managed to further increase his speed. He could hear his heart pounding, his lungs beginning to strain until they couldn’t take it anymore. He broke the surface just by the set of rocks.  
   
 Just in time to get smacked in the head by one. He spluttered, sinking for a moment before Mikasa brought him back up. She lifted Armin effortlessly onto the rock with her other arm, murmuring some instruction to him before turning to Eren.  
 “Get up.”  
 Eren looked confused. Mikasa sighed and almost threw him into the rock. Armin offered a hand and he took it. He understood once Armin gave him a bit of a lift up.  
 “ _Mikasa!_ ” That was Jean. Eren looked over, seeing Levi draped over his shoulder.  
 “He passed out partway! That and…”  
 “The change is happening faster, I noticed,” she murmured. “Give him to Eren.”  
   
 Eren looked between the two of them, confused about what he was supposed to do, by what was happening. Mikasa glanced at him as she lifted herself onto the rocks. “I need to get Ymir. Sit on the ledge. Don’t let him leave the water, either of them.”  
 Eren nodded hesitantly. He didn’t understand why they were all so worried.  
   
 He understood once Levi was placed in his arms. His breathing was shallow and face scrunched tight. As soon as Eren’s arms were around him, Levi clenched them hard enough he yelped.  
 “He has a hell of a grip,” Jean complained.  
 “I don’t understand,” Eren breathed. He let a brief smile cross his face. He didn’t think he’d have enough energy to talk after everything, perhaps the swim had reenergized him.  
 “Look at his legs idiot.”  
 Armin frowned and swam to Eren’s other side, letting his feet still dangle in the water.  
 Eren looked, but didn’t see much different. So what if Levi’s legs were closer together than normal?  
   
 “Get his clothes off,” Ymir ordered. “That’s half of your problem right there. What? Are you all idiots? What were you thinking?”  
 Mikasa looked abashed, but Eren still didn’t understand. It must have shown on his face because soon enough Ymir was in the water ripping off Levi’s clothing.  
 “You took him into the water too soon, swam for too long.” She cursed and let the clothing drift away.  
 “It’s my fault,” Mikasa admitted miserably. “Eren didn’t know. I didn’t know.”  
 “Yeah, your overprotectiveness really worked in your favour,” Ymir replied back sarcastically. She touched a gentle hand to Levi’s legs, and now Eren understood why Levi was barely conscious.  
   
 Levi’s hips were turning a silver-blue and the tops of his legs were fusing together.  
 “It’s more painful than getting devoured by those sharks.” Ymir’s voice was soft. “Most of us were unconscious when the change started.” She glanced up at Eren. “Your state of consciousness doesn’t change until you’ve changed. If you want him to survive, you’ll be risking your life. I’d suggest just killing him instead, easier on you both.”  
 “Ymir!” Mikasa called.  
 “That’s over the top!” Krista’s head popped up, but Eren kept his eyes focused on Ymir’s own. She didn’t want this either.  
   
 “How can I save him?” Eren whispered. Ymir’s hard face dissolved into a small smile and climbed back up on the rock to ruffle his hair.  
 “Just what you do best,” Ymir replied. “But you’re pretty worn out: that’s what makes this dangerous.”  
 “I’ll do it.”  
 “Eren.” Armin touched his arm. He saw him glance at Ymir as he carded through Levi’s hair.  
 “You’ll be fine Levi, we’re safe here.” Eren shifted to be a little more comfortable even as he could hear Armin’s voice rising in volume.  
   
 Levi was in pain. It was his fault. It wasn’t on purpose, but it was because of him that Levi was going through this pain. There would be plenty of time for questions later, but right now he had to focus. Levi’s breathing was becoming even shallower.  
   
 “Feel what he’s feeling,” Ymir’s voice broke through, guiding him quietly. Eren remembered the splitting feeling in his tail and the comfortable feeling as they reattached. He could remember the barest moments of pain for his own transformation. It was then that he could hear the words come to him quietly.  
 He didn’t force the song. If he did, Levi would only get worse. He had to calm himself, let his nerves and muscles relax.  
   
 Then the pain started. Eren felt his own tail jolt, and hands steadying him. He wanted to bite his lip, to distract himself from this pain, from Levi’s pain. Except if he did, his voice would stop and Levi would be alone in his pain. Levi didn’t deserve more pain after everything, and this was all his fault.  
   
 As the pain increased he could feel himself wavering. His vision began to darken. His vision was narrowing until he couldn’t see anyone else. Then it blacked out and all he could hear was his own heartbeat, aligned with Levi’s. At some point even the vibrations in his throat stopped and all he knew was darkness.  
   
 He awoke to laughter, and a groggy feeling.  
 “Oh! The human awakes,” Ymir teased.  
 Eren shot her a glare and tried to move his tail, realising it moved separately. “Wha—”  
 “Happened while you were dealing with the shorty,” Ymir interrupted.  
 “Is Eren awake?” He could hear Krista calling and lots of splashing. “Oh thank god! I mean, it’ll still be a bit for you to come back, but you’re okay!”  
 “What…”  
 “Levi’s fine,” Mina reassured him. “We didn’t want you to slip off so we brought you up when Armin told us what happened.”  
 “You’ll just have to stay in the water for a bit to change back. It should be fairly quick and painless.” Ymir shrugged before narrowing her eyes. “That said. Never bring someone you change into the water that quickly without knocking them out first. It hurts like fuck if their body doesn’t have the chance to adapt first.”  
 Eren nodded fervently and edged forward to dip his feet in.  
   
 “Mikasa’s showing Levi the ropes for now and teaching him the rules,” Ymir continued in boredom. “The three of you are on probation for now which means escorts _anywhere_ you go.”  
 Eren gave her a wry smile. “Making sure we recover and seeing if Levi and Armin have their second change soon?”  
 “Maybe. I’m never sure if you’re too smart or too dumb.”  
 “Ymir!” Krista said, horrified.  
 “What? He’s smart enough to keep his mouth shut and observe but he doesn’t realise some of the basics of the first change, how is that not dumb? Plus he got caught!”  
 Krista folded her arms across her chest.  
 Ymir sagged and waved slightly. “Right, right. Anyways, you’re on your own for now since it’ll take a while before you can swim properly. Let everyone know you’re okay, got it? No going past the rocks.”  
 “Yes your witchiness,” Eren grumbled. It felt weird having legs again and the separate movement was really strange. That and all the different parts felt weird to have again.  
   
 He sighed as he felt the water caress him once more. Soon, he would have to teach Levi and Armin. He closed his eyes as he floated on the surface. He had a lot to teach them, but for once, they had the time.


	24. Learning Curve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lots to learn, with lots of time. Armin feels a little self-conscious

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wifi I have indeed. Just the epilogue left

 Armin smiled as he watched Eren slip further into the water. It had been a great relief that Ymir was there when he collapsed, letting him know Eren was alive.  
   
 He stared at his feet. He was still land-bound while Levi was learning how to swim with his new body. Although, Mikasa claimed that Levi ‘does more flailing than swimming’. Armin still didn’t feel any different. He sighed and pulled out a foot to look.  
 “Worried?” Eren’s voice made Armin jump.  
 He gave him a weak smile and shook his head. “Just wishing I could swim with everyone.”  
 “Well, there’s still plenty I need to teach you. Has anyone told you much?”  
 Armin shook his head and hesitated as Eren held a hand out.  
 There was a strange twinkle in Eren’s eyes. “Come swim with me. I’m still waiting to change back anyways.”  
   
 Armin ducked his head to hide a smile and slipped off the rock into the water. He worried a little because he wasn’t the strongest swimmer either.  
 “I won’t let you sink.” Eren slowly led Armin into deeper water.  
 Armin became increasingly nervous as the water grew deeper. But they were still close enough to the rocks that he could just reach out if he started to sink though.  
   
 “There’re a few reasons we actually stay near piles of rock,” Eren admitted as he caught Armin’s nervous glances at the boulders. Armin grinned, hoping that Eren would continue to explain even if he didn’t say anything. He was a little more focused on keeping his head above water. “Follow me and you’ll see.” Eren began to sink down.  
 Armin grabbed his hand tightly, keeping their heads above the water. Eren turned around and gave him a hug.  
 “It’s fine, I’ll be there with you. Just take a deep breath, put your head under and open your eyes.”  
 Armin clenched Eren’s hand tighter. “Small steps?”  
 Eren gave a small nod. Armin took a few breaths to gear himself up before taking one deep one and letting himself sink under the water.  
   
 He was fine; he was fine. He could open his eyes and Eren would be right there; Eren wouldn’t let him drown.  
 He slowly pried his eyes open and smiled as he saw Eren kicking lightly at the water. It was strange to see him without his usual golden scales. He hesitated a moment before he reached out to touch Eren’s legs. Eren jerked back out of his reach and Armin couldn’t help but giggle. He blinked, the water didn’t seem to be bothering him at all.  
   
 He finally rose up and took in a deep breath.  
 “Are you okay? I’m sorry I moved it was just…”  
 Armin smiled as Eren tried to figure out the words. “Ticklish?” he offered. He guessed that was probably the right word from how Eren frowned. “I’ll show you later,” Armin said. “But… you wanted to show me something?”  
 His heart thumped heavily against his chest as Eren beamed and ducked under water. Armin followed him. He did wish his hair was shorter like the others, although Eren’s hair looked like it was getting long as well. Did they cut each other’s hair? How did they do it?  
 He followed Eren carefully through a set of tunnels through the rocks. He was beginning to worry about running out of air when he saw a flicker of light.  
   
 He surpassed Eren in his desperation for air, passing several fish and blonde hair. He could hear laughter around him. He could feel the blood rush to his face and tried to duck back under water. Unfortunately, Eren and Levi stopped him. “When did you get back?” Armin mumbled.  
 “Not long.” Levi grimaced. “It’s fucking weird to be so exhausted when the sun is still up.”  
 “You’ll get used to it.” Krista popped up. “We sleep whenever we need the energy, although most of us do sleep over the night still. It’s harder to stay warm then, so we tend to huddle.”  
 “Is that why Eren is so touchy?” Armin asked. He gave a small smile when Eren turned beet red and hid under the water.  
   
 Krista hid her own smile. “Maybe.”  
 Armin shivered at Levi’s intense stare. “Is something wrong?”  
 The corners of Levi’s mouth twitched upwards. “Look at your feet.”  
 Armin frowned, as he thought of a way that he could look without getting out of the water. Finally he decided to duck under and pull his legs up. Once he managed it, he couldn’t quite pull his eyes away. His feet had flattened looking almost like flippers. It wasn’t until Levi came and pulled him up that he stopped looking.  
   
 “Is that normal?”  
 Levi snorted. “How would I know?”  
 “Most of us were turned on the moment, and were unconscious during the process,” Krista said. “So we’ve never seen it happen so slowly either… Ymir might know though.”  
 “Because she’s a…” Armin frowned, trying to remember the name for her species. Octopus or sea witch would be just rude.  
 “ _Cecealia_ ,” Krista offered. “No, she’s the oldest out of all of us.”  
 “She joined the pod later though,” Eren added. “She was a drifter before.”  
 “Why would she join then?” Levi crossed his arms. “Is it normal for random ones to just come up and join you?”  
   
 Armin stared at both Eren and Krista, neither seemed to really want to answer the question.  
 “No, but we were having a hard time trying to protect Krista from more… predatory fish at the time.”  
 Another merman surfaced, one that he hadn’t met before.  
 “Armin, Levi, this is Thomas.”  
 “What the hell is he?” Levi was eying Thomas suspiciously. “For that matter, how the fuck can you tell species apart?”  
 Eren raised his arms helplessly and Krista shook her head.  
   
 “You’ll get it soon enough,” she said. “Just listen to the little voices.”  
 “The little voices are insane,” Levi growled. Armin looked at them all. Little voices? Eren had mentioned something about instinct before, perhaps that was what Krista meant.  
 “No wonder your swimming is so horrible then,” Thomas grinned. “That’s how we all learned. Jean’s going to get jealous soon that you’re monopolising Mikasa.”  
 “That’s his problem,” Levi snarled.  
 Armin shared a look with Eren. He had noticed Jean’s attention on Mikasa as well before. “I don’t think so,” Armin’s voice was quiet. He hated getting into fights, especially when they would all have to start getting along eventually. He cringed as the air thickened.  
   
 “Why are you here Thomas?” Krista huffed to break the tension.  
 He offered a wary smile. “Some of us are going hunting, do you need anything?”  
 “Siren,” Levi stated. Armin stared at him, wondering where that was coming from until he traced the conversation back. He glanced around to see Krista and Thomas staring at Levi with grins on their faces.  
 “Now you’re getting it!” Thomas crowed before he turned to Krista.  
 “I don’t need anything, but I think you might want to harvest some kelp if you see any for these three.”  
 Armin frowned; he hadn’t had kelp before. Would it be fine given he wasn’t really, well, _anything_ right now?  
 “We all start on a greens diet. Some species require a different energy and thus meat. The more passive ones well…” Krista glanced over at Eren.  
   
 Armin suddenly laughed. There was so much to learn, and quite likely so much that even they didn’t know. He grasped at a rock to hold himself up while he tried to catch his breath.  
 “Armin…” Levi’s voice was quiet and wary.  
 “It’s just… Hanji could spend her entire life and not understand everything.”  
 He heard Eren’s snort of laughter. “She’d have fun trying.”  
 “Eren…” Krista’s voice was wary. “Are you thinking of turning someone else?”  
 Armin turned sharply to look at Eren. Turn Hanji? She would probably be ecstatic at the offer.  
   
 “Who knows,” Eren shot back. “I have a year.”  
 Armin bit his lip. He did hope that they all got out fine. There had been quite a ruckus when they left, so he assumed that _something_ had happened at least.  
 “Stop treating yourself like shit,” Levi scolded, prying his lip from his teeth. Armin felt his face heat up again. Levi’s smile put him a little on edge but when their lips pressed together he felt all his blood rush to his face.  
 “Cute.”  
 Eren chuckled and Armin quietly sank back underwater, hoping that it would help cool his face. He didn’t expect Levi to join him there. He hesitated a moment before taking his hand.  
   
 Levi’s tail was gorgeous, on par with Eren’s. Armin wouldn’t be too surprised if he developed some plain colour. Levi was a dark blue with traces of silver. He hesitated a moment before letting his hand trace over some of Levi’s scales. He flinched as he felt the razor edge.  
   
 His eyes didn’t leave Levi’s as his hand was brought up and Levi licked the cut. He smiled slightly as he was brought into his captain’s arms, surrounded by warmth. He barely noticed when they both surfaced again.  
 “See, you are better when you aren’t thinking,” Mikasa’s voice broke Armin out of the warmth and he flinched. He could almost see Levi glaring at Mikasa for breaking the mood.  
 “Maybe I don’t want to learn alone, did you think about that?”  
 Armin shivered at Levi’s low voice, his commanding voice.  
 “You don’t scare me,” she declared as she lifted herself up onto the rocks. “Armin’s more in tune than you are, and understands more.” She paused for a moment to turn around and look at them all. “You should get as much of a start as you can. Thomas?”  
 The siren straightened, ceasing all movement for a moment.  
 “Weren’t you joining the hunting party?”  
 “Y-Yes! I just wanted to see if they needed anything first! I’ll head out now!”  
 Thomas dove quickly, splashing them all.  
   
 Armin eyed Mikasa as she moved away. If he wanted to ask, now was the time. He had been in the water for over a day with no change until now. “Mikasa?” his voice wavered. It strengthened slightly as Levi rubbed his shoulders. “Why is my change so slow?”  
 She paused and turned around. “I don’t know. The closest guess we have is that it’s been so long since Eren kissed you and you haven’t had much contact with the ocean in that time.”  
 Armin nodded as if it made sense, even though he didn’t understand why that would matter.  
   
 “You were only sitting in it earlier. It’s possible that more exposure will speed the process. Has there been any pain?”  
 Armin shook his head and stared as she smiled.  
 “Good. Why don’t you let Krista and Eren show you the fish then? That’s probably why he brought you here.”  
   
 Armin glanced and met Eren’s eyes. Eren nodded sheepishly. Armin gave them a small smile. “I’d like that.” They all looked at Levi that just gave a half shrug and smile.  
 Armin giggled before taking a breath and letting himself sink lower. Now that he wasn’t rushing to breathe he could see the myriad of colours surrounding them.  
   
 He smiled when he recognised the three angel fish that had been with Eren and a few of the fish that Hanji had dumped in later.  
 He glanced up at Eren and Levi with a smile on his face. It fell slowly at their stares. He glanced at Krista, wondering if something was wrong. She had the oddest smile on her face.  
  _‘Armin… why don’t you try talking?’_  
 He stared at her. How was she doing that? He shook his head. He didn’t want to let his air out, but Krista grabbed his hands firmly.  
  _‘Try? I’ll bring you up if you have trouble.’_  
 Armin hesitated before glancing at Eren who was nodding fervently. Levi looked so confused, but stayed silent. Eren was showing him some gestures, making Levi even more frustrated.  
  _‘Why?’_ His hands flew to his mouth and he turned quickly to look.  
   
 His tail was pale yellow and he hadn’t even noticed the fusion. He took his hands away and took a small breath in and stared. How could he breathe water? He flinched as Krista touched at his neck gently.  
  _‘You can breathe in air and water. It seems I have a lot to teach you!’_ She clapped her hands in excitement. _‘I didn’t know someone could skip over the aicaya stage!’_  
 Armin gave her a small smile and glanced over at Eren and Levi who were both wearing small smiles of their own. _‘Please teach us all you can.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be a Hanji aside that actually explains a lot of the mermaid stuff that's kinda glazed over here.


	25. Epilogue - Past Perspective

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hanji reflects on what's changed, and what they'll do going forward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter does come from a different perspective from any of the previous ones. Thank you all for being here and reading, enjoying this work. I do hope to get at least one aside done from Hanji's perspective, and possibly another one from Erwin's.

 “Hanji! Be careful!”  
 Hanji ignored Moblit’s warning and continued scrambling across various research materials. The ringtone was familiar, but it had been so long that the phone had since been buried in their—Hanji’s—typical fashion.  
 “What are you doing?” Moblit’s surprise wasn’t unusual, startled that there was some sort of cleaning going on. Hanji usually kept all the worthless materials near the bottom and forgot that the ancient phone was in the same area as the pile.  
   
 “Hello?” They finally unearthed the receiver.  
 “ _It’s about time,_ ” Levi grumbled. “ _You lost the phone in your shit didn’t you?_ ”  
 “Can you gloat later? How long do I have to prepare?” Hanji rearranged their glasses. “I mean the usual stuff you’ll need is always up to date but I don’t know how many people are coming over and—”  
 “ _Shut up. God, I forgot how irritating this is._ ” There was a shuffle and laughter on the other end.  
 “ _There are ten of us._ ” Armin’s voice crackled.  
 “Ten?” Hanji’s voice cracked. The last time Eren’s pod visited they had numbered twenty.  
 “ _We’ll talk about it later. Same place?_ ”  
 “Same place.”  
 “ _Five hours._ ”  
   
 The phone clicked and Hanji placed the receiver down gently before looking up at Moblit.  
 “Visitors?” He leaned against the doorframe. “You weren’t kidding when you said you collect odds and ends were you?”  
 Hanji let out a nervous laugh. They hadn’t _quite_ gotten around to telling Moblit everything. Perhaps the visit would be a good opportunity. “Ten people staying over for a while. I need to help them update some papers and such.”  
 Moblit’s eyebrows rose. “So that’s why it doesn’t bother you that this place is so empty.”  
 “I used to get visitors a lot more frequently, and it was good for some of the larger sea life as well. It’s been a while since it’s been needed though.” It was on the list of things that Hanji wanted to talk about with Eren’s pod. Levi and Armin had the best take on the health of the entire ocean.  
   
 “Do you want me to go?”  
 Hanji tensed. “I want you to stay… but you, or they, might want you to go…” Hanji looked up at him. “It’s… a difficult situation to explain and if you stay I’d need your promise that certain things don’t leave this house.” A faint smile crossed their lips. “Actually, if you stay it might help with some parts of your thesis as well. One or two of the people coming over are something of an expert for some of the data you need.”  
 Hanji felt their heart rate increase during Moblit’s silence.  
 “It has to do with your sabbaticals doesn’t it?”  
 “Something along those lines.”  
 Moblit striding over and enfolding them in his arms wasn’t an expected reaction. They breathed in the smell of sea salt and pancakes.  
 “I’ll stay.”  
 A smile broke over Hanji’s face and they drew him closer.  
 “Good, you can help me clean up ten of the ocean rooms.”  
 Moblit’s eyebrows drew together, but didn’t say anything as they turned down the beds and changed the filters.  
   
 Hanji’s workplace was a mess by most standards, but they kept the rest of the facility clean. In the more recent decades they unfortunately had to change the system to recycle ocean water within the house, rather than use a direct line. Rerouting that line took even more money, but the separate medical room for any ocean creatures helped them relax.  
   
 They heard the swearing at the front door before the doorbell even rang. Hanji couldn’t keep the grin off their face. Levi hated change in familiar objects, like the security system at the gate.  
 “ _Open the goddamned door! I know you’re fucking there already!_ ”  
 They wished they could see Levi’s face when he saw Moblit opening the door.  
 “Who the fuck was that?”  
 Hanji blinked and glanced down at their papers then looking back at the hallway. Levi must have panicked and sprinted down after seeing a strange face.  
 “Moblit,” Hanji said.  
 “Who, or _what_ is Moblit?”  
 “A fellow researcher of sorts. He’s human.”  
 “What else would I be?”  
 Levi froze before shifting into a fighting stance. It would have been threatening, if Hanji hadn’t swept his feet from under him.  
   
 “Be nice _Captain_. If you’re really upset… he can leave…”  
 “But you’d like him to stay,” Eren stated. He and Armin had followed behind Moblit, probably leaving the rest of the pod to settle into their rooms.  
 “I would.” Hanji resisted the urge to fidget while Levi glared at them.  
 “How much?” Armin was direct, his eyes almost burning.  
 They rubbed the back of their head nervously. “I was going to catch everyone up at the same time?”  
 Levi closed his eyes painfully. “Please tell me you’re joking?”  
 “Nope!” Hanji laughed nervously.  
   
 “I can leave if you prefer,” Moblit offered. He began to back out of the room without a word, only stopping when Armin grabbed his arm.  
 “If Hanji would like you to stay, we should give you a chance.”  
 Hanji watched Moblit’s eyes flicker to each person before he stood attentively.  
 “Drinks?”  
 “Black tea,” Levi grumbled.  
 “Just make that ginormous pot, Moblit.” Hanji grinned.  
 Moblit raised an eyebrow. “The one you said is for special occasions?”  
 “That’s the one! Use that expensive tea too!”  
   
 The room was quiet while Moblit shuffled off and closed the door behind him.  
 “What were you thinking?” Levi hissed.  
 Hanji cringed. “I like him! He’s fun, he makes sure I eat but he isn’t too irritating about it. He’s probably the only person that can put up with me for a long period of time!”  
 The corner of Levi’s mouth twitched before he looked away; the bastard was probably grinning about their reaction.  
   
 “Hanji.” Armin, ever the voice of reason, got them back on track. “Just how much has changed? It was a little difficult figuring out some of the new transport. Levi wanted to just walk over because everything was so different.”  
 Hanji laughed. They wondered how much persuading Eren and Armin had to do so that they weren’t traipsing across the largest continent. “Well, the basics are pretty much the same, but many things have been condensed so they can do more. You remember that theory we had about those computers last time?”  
 “Yes, did it prove true?”  
 Hanji pulled out their cell phone. “That is the new phones. They’re pretty much computers all on their own as well.”  
 “That thing?” Levi’s eyes went wide. “The last time we were here fucking computers would take up a room or two.”  
 “Some of the supercomputers still might,” Hanji shrugged. “There’s been a fair amount of social change as well. There’s been a… wave perhaps, of legalising same-sex marriage. Women rights still have some issues, but there’s been more coverage about issues between the inequalities between all genders.”  
   
 “Wait,” Eren raised a hand. “All? You mean both?”  
 Hanji took off their glasses to polish. “No… that’s… some of the change as well.” They managed to keep their hands from shaking.  
 “One ginormous pot of tea, with five cups. Did I miss much?”  
 Hanji took in a deep breath before smiling slightly.  
 Moblit drew back slightly, squinting at Hanji. “You haven’t told them.”  
 “Told us what?” Levi crossed his arms and scowled.  
 “It’s a little hard because they’re old friends,” Hanji admitted.  
 Moblit’s gaze softened slightly. “It’ll be fine Hanj’.”  
 They took a deep breath and unclenched their hands. “Most people identify as male or female, then there are people that are born labelled as one, but are the other. Then there are people that don’t fit into either, the nonbinary section.” Hanji took a shaky sip of tea. “I… I’m not male or female. Which... leaves me in the nonbinary section.””  
 Hanji expected Levi’s reaction. He paced out of the room, slamming doors behind him. They couldn’t stop the shaking from happening, but the shakes were subdued when Moblit enfolded Hanji into his arms.  
   
 “Hanji,” Armin hesitated for a moment. They forced themselves to look into his eyes, only seeing concern and worry. “Why so long to tell us?”  
 “I,” they choked. “I didn’t know there was a word. I only knew mine was _wrong_.”  
 “He’ll be back,” Eren assured them. “The tea’s here.”  
 Hanji bent over laughing. He would be back. After Hanji calmed down a bit, partially thanks to the excellent tea, they knew Levi was more upset at having been their friend for so long and not knowing something so fundamental.  
   
 Sure enough, he returned. He was dripping water everywhere and was a slightly uncomfortable silence while they all drank a cup of tea.  
 “What do you prefer to be called?” Levi finally asked. His politeness was a hidden apology for the last few centuries, if Hanji read him right.  
 “I’m still Hanji. Just the pronouns are different now: they or them.”  
 “Fine. If you keep something like that from me again I’m going to burn your old shit.”  
 Hanji blinked before smiling. “But Levi, half of that shit is yours.”  
   
 “What?” Moblit stared at Levi. “Those antiques and everything?”  
 Levi shrugged, but Eren was the one that answered. “They were new when we got them.”  
 Hanji gently pushed Moblit’s chin up to close his jaw. “We’re all a few centuries old. Seems that’s one of the perks of living in the ocean for a long time as a mermaid.”  
 “Not,” Moblit squeaked. “Possible.”  
 Eren grinned brightly, looking between all of them. “Pool?”  
 Hanji laughed. “Probably for the best. I could use a long dip anyways.”  
   
 The changes were seamless. It only took the group twenty years or so to figure out how the change between forms worked. It took almost another hundred to get the timing between changes right to avoid any pain. They weren’t sure if Moblit was stunned silent or quietly observing. “Want to join in?”  
 “I-uh.” Moblit’s eyes drifted around the pod.  
 “That’s fine.” Hanji levered themselves out, flipping their tail out with ease. “Any ideas for dinner for twelve?”  
 “Pizza?”  
 Hanji made a face. “Levi’s peculiar with fast food.”  
 “He can live,” Eren stated. “Actually, he seemed to be craving a bit of fast food. Probably so that he feels dirtier inside than out.”  
 Hanji’s face fell. “Has it gotten that bad?”  
   
 Eren levered himself out as well, watching them all play. “He won’t tell us exactly how bad it is, but it’s started to affect all of us now. We can’t go back until the ocean’s better.”  
 “Better? The ocean isn’t a living—” Moblit protested.  
 “It is,” Hanji interrupted. “Levi’s tied closer to it as an _oceanid_ … I thought he looked off last time but I really couldn’t be sure. He’s too good at hiding it now.”  
 “It took me a year to convince him we needed to stay out for good, help protect our home before we can go back.” Eren’s voice was quiet, mournful almost. “I don’t even know if there’re any pods out there anymore, besides mine and Ymir’s.”  
 “Did you send word?” Hanji asked.  
 “Armin did.”  
 Hanji nodded. They had wondered about the decline, but if the ocean was as sick as Eren said it made sense. More pods would go to land, and the inhabitants were more tolerant now.  
   
 “So, you’re back to save the ocean this time then?” Hanji teased. “Good thing I have some floor plans then.”  
 “We don’t want to stay here though,” Eren jumped in. “There’s a lot of us, and we couldn’t impose that long.”  
 “You don’t have to.” Hanji caught Levi’s eye and he drifted over, leaning on the pool wall. “I unearthed something astonishing in an old town we all know. There was a house there that fell into the hands of the Smith family, but every person’s will that’s owned it states that it’s to ‘be held for the Ackerman family, with proof of their heirloom’.”  
 Levi’s eyes widened.  
 “We don’t know what was up with Erwin still,” Hanji continued. “But, maybe he did regret, who knows? But you guys have a home, especially since you still have Levi’s dagger.”  
 “In your care though,” Eren corrected.  
 Hanji shrugged. “Just help Moblit with his research, that’s the price for it, Levi. For that and all your new documentation.”  
   
 They could almost swear that Levi’s eyes were misting over, but didn’t press the matter. “So, is that settled?”  
 Levi nodded.  
 “Good, how about we all get out then and plot how to save the world?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all again for being with me for this ride.

**Author's Note:**

> See you guys soon :)


End file.
